Parents and students at South Oak Cliff High School were back in front of Dallas ISD trustees Thursday, demanding that a new South Oak Cliff High School be built.
"Our building is telling you we can't take no more. South Oak Cliff cannot take anymore," said the Rev. Horace Bradshaw.
On Tuesday a suspected gas leak forced students to evacuate the building. Dallas Fire-Rescue investigated but found no evidence of a leak. Later that night, Atmos Energy reported a drop in pressure and shut the system off. On Wednesday, students were evacuated for a second time due to another issue with the system.
Two of the school's three gas lines were back in service Thursday, and the third will be inspected this weekend.
"We haven't been able to detect a leak. Again, as we put the [pressure] gauges on, there was some drop that would indicate there is some leakage somewhere," said Willie Burroughs, the school district's executive director of maintenance and facilities services.
The district maintains that the building is safe, but parents argue that the ongoing issues and repair work being done during the school day are hindering their students' ability to learn.
"The building is distracting them from learning in school. Again today, the noise from the drilling and working on the building while the kids are there, working on the gas line while the kids are there, it's not safe," said Pastor Maxie Johnson.
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Johnson's son, David, led a student walkout last year before graduating. Johnson also has a daughter in the 11th grade.
"The experiences that she has been talking about are sad," he said. "She's saying she doesn't understand why the trustees or the district will not give the kids what they're asking for."
The district plans to spend million of dollars in bond funding to make major renovations at the school, but those long-term fixes will have to wait until June.
Johnson said there is only one solution.
"Two words: new school," he said.
