Students evacuate high school for disaster drill

HENRY COUNTY, Tenn. — Students evacuated Henry County High School Friday morning, all in hopes of being better prepared in the event of a real threat.

“Hopefully it will better prepare us if something does happen,” student Jared Pugh said.

A thousand students at the school experienced a mock tornado drill Friday, which was something emergency officials had planned since last year. Students were led to the football stadium and then taken to the Henry County Fairgrounds off campus.

More than 50 of their classmates were also considered wounded, some even dead, and were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

“We didn’t know what to expect going into this, but having done this now, if we do need to do this sometime in the future, we all know what to do and where we’re going to be. I think it’ll help a little bit with the chaos because we’ll know what to expect,” student Katie Plowman said.

The school system said they hope this not only prepares its students but is helpful to its teachers and first responders.

“We can never lose a sense of urgency for any crisis, not just in tornado drills, but there’s a variety of weather that comes through our area,” Director of Henry County Schools Brian Norton said.

Whatever the circumstance, emergency crews said they’re grateful to have this type of drill.

“It just keeps our skills toned to where if it actually happens, you’re a little more prepared because training, practice, you can’t do too much of that,” Paris Fire Chief Michael Williams said.

Henry County First Responders, Henry County Medical Center, the school system, and city first responders all took part in the planning for this drill.