Dallas

2 Dallas ISD Schools Likely a ‘Total Loss' After Sunday Storms, Jefferson HS Done at Least Through End of School Year

Six schools have severe storm damage and six more are still without power Tuesday

The Dallas Independent School District says classes at 12 of its campuses will remain canceled Tuesday after Sunday's tornado outbreak.

On Monday, Superintendent Michael Hinojosa said two of those campuses — Walnut Hill Elementary School and Cary Middle School — are a total loss and will need to be rebuilt.

Dealey Montessori, Franklin Middle School, Hillcrest High School, Kramer Elementary School, Joe May Elementary School, Francisco Medrano Middle School, Cigarroa Elementary School, Burnett Elementary School, Pershing Elementary School and Thomas Jefferson High School will not have class Tuesday, Dallas ISD tweeted Tuesday morning.

Hinojosa said Monday Thomas Jefferson High School will be uninhabitable through at least the end of the school year. He said he hoped students could return to Jefferson by August.

Hinojosa said it appeared Thomas Jefferson High School took less damage than the other two schools, but the district would need an engineer to take a closer look. He said he hoped students could return to Jefferson by August.

Three other schools took significant damage Sunday night, Hinojosa said. Those were Burnet, Cigarroa and Pershing elementary schools.

"This is going to very inconvenient for some of these families. I mean, we have a feeder pattern – an elementary, a middle and high school right there, and a lot of kids live in that neighborhood and they’ve grown up in that neighborhood and it's all they know," said Hinojosa.

He said students from Burnet and Cigarroa elementary schools would report to Loos Fieldhouse Wednesday, along with their teachers, for school. Hinojosa said he hoped Pershing Elementary would be ready to go by Wednesday, but if not, those students and teachers would also report to the fieldhouse.

About 10 other schools that were closed Monday were because of power outages as opposed to damage, Hinojosa said. Several of those campuses will hold classes Tuesday, while others might wait a little longer due to restricted road access.

For a detailed list of those affected campuses, click here.

The district says you can make a monetary donations through the Dallas Education Foundation by clicking here.

Gift cards, preferably in $25–$30 increments, are also being accepted. Mail the gift card to 9400 N. Central Expressway, Box 21. For questions about gift card donations, please call (972) 925-5440.

The district is also accepting small boxes of new school supplies, which can be dropped off at the three following locations Monday–Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.:

• Kathlyn Joy Gilliam Collegiate Academy, 1700 E. Camp Wisdom Road

• Turney W. Leonard Training Center, 5151 Samuel Blvd

• One Center at Linus Wright Administration Building, 9400 N. Central Expressway, first floor

The National Weather Service confirmed Monday an EF-3 tornado touchdown in North Dallas Sunday, bringing down power lines, destroying homes and businesses and spreading debris across the area.

The storms affected several other North Texas school districts, including Garland, Midlothian and Richardson.

NBC 5's Candace Sweat contributed to this report.

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