Timpson ISD Site Evacuation Due to Gas Leak

February 20, 2015 - (Photos by Shelby County Today) Timpson ISD evacuated students and staff from the district site when a company putting in telephone lines punctured a gas line causing a major leak. Student safety always comes first, therefore, the students and staff were quickly evacuated to the First Baptist Church in Timpson. A site evacuation is part of the Timpson ISD safety plan used when for any reason remaining on site is unsafe. It is important in a site evacuation to remove students and staff from the site as quickly as possible. All students and staff were evacuated from the campus in 10-15 minutes.

Parents were notified as soon as possible following the site evacuation through the Bear Update and news media. Anyone who wants to receive the Bear Update should send an email to Superintendent Mid Johnson at mjohnson@timpsonisd.com and put ‘Add to Bear Update’ in the subject line. Parents were able to pick up students at the church by signing them out. Parents were asked to come in the church building to sign students out to ensure student safety and that they would be leaving only with parents or persons who had parent permission to pick up students. Buses ran at 1:15 p.m. Students who did not have adults at home were brought back to the church so that they would not be left unattended.

The TISD staff did an outstanding job supervising students and ensuring they were quickly and safely evacuated from the district site. At the church, the staff supervised the students to ensure their safety and keep students calm. Once it was determined by the gas company, local law enforcement and district personnel, that it was safe to be on campus and enter the buildings, students, parents and staff were able to return to campus to retrieve personnel items.

Dr. Mid Johnson, TISD Superintendent, expressed his appreciation to staff, law enforcement, Timpson city workers and the Timpson Volunteer Fire Department for working together to ensure the safety of our students and staff. Dr. Johnson also expresses appreciation to First Baptist church’s pastor, Dr. Josh Walters, and the church membership for allowing the district to house students at the church during the evacuation.

He also expressed appreciation to the media who help the district keep parents informed and updated throughout the evacuation. District personnel, including substitutes, receive training on site evacuation each year. A practice site evacuation is also completed each year. The training and practice drill help prepare students and staff for a real evacuation when one is needed.

District personnel also appreciated the many positive comments parents and community members gave in person and on social media concerning how quickly and safely the evacuation took place.