Just as the buses were beginning to arrive, but prior to students exiting the buses, it was reported that a car was on fire on the far side of the parking lot. Given the circumstances, students remained on their buses and a staff member boarded each bus to assist children. The buses were then diverted to the High School where they waited for about 20 minutes until the Commack Volunteer Fire Dept. put out the fire, and the traffic on Townline Road subsided. Everyone was then returned to the school and escorted to their classrooms for the start of the school day. Teachers will take time to explain what happened and how the adults worked together to assure they were safe at all times.
Students are now safely back at North Ridge and the Halloween Parade scheduled for 2:30 this afternoon will be held as planned. To the credit of Mrs. Rihm and her entire staff, I am happy to report that the school’s emergency preparedness plans for such an event were enacted without fault.
I’d like to thank everyone that helped ensure the safety of our students and staff this morning, including district office staff, the Suffolk County Police Department, the Commack Volunteer Fire Department, and North Ridge staff.
Dr. Donald James,
Superintendent of Schools