High school students prepare in event of evacuation

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Photo by Quinn Williams

Ms. Kaulana Molina checks in her third period Health students during the evacuation drill at Kana’iaupuni Stadium field on Wednesday December 17.

By Quinn Williams, news writer

Kamehameha Maui high school-ers lined up at Kana’iaupuni Stadium football field for their first ever school evacuation drill on Wednesday, December 17.

Teachers in orange construction vests led students to the  stadium field where they met with their period three teacher, lined up, and checked in for attendance. From here, students waited for the all-clear announcement by vice principal, Mr. Leo Delatori.

“The evacuation drill went very well. I was worried about coming down here and people just, kind of all over the place. But everyone stayed with their class, which made it way faster,” Mr. Delatori said.

Usually, in an evacuation drill, our students would be transported off campus; however, since this was a first drill, the high school administration wanted to take “small steps.”

“We wanted just to practice the evacuating just on campus. Next year we have planned the full [one], on the buses, to a separate site,” said Mr. Martin Lacio, safety and aquatics manager.

The middle school and elementary school campuses run separate evacuation drills. For on-campus evacuation drills, they meet at Kahekili field, located at the middle school.

Instances that would require a school evacuation would be dangers like bomb threats or chemical or gas leaks.

“Another reason for evacuating the campus would be for after we have an active threat, active shooters, those kind of scenarios,” said Mr. Lacio. “We’ve seen them in the mainland, so after that would happen [with the campus locked down] then parents wouldn’t be able to pick up their kids on campus, so you’d have to evacuate some place else and be transported.”

This evacuation drill was originally planned for last year, but due to unexpected wet weather, it was postponed until this year, and will be held once a year from now on, according to Mr. Delatori.