Gas leak causes Gueydan High to close for the day

GUEYDAN - School at Gueydan High ended early on Thursday because of a gas leak in front of the school near the football stadium.
Gueydan Mayor Jude Reece informed the high school about the leak and recommended the school close as a precaution.
Reece said the leak was discovered during a gas line inspection by the pipeline company. The gas line services gas to the concession at Gueydan football stadium.
The leak caused the gas to be turned off at Gueydan High.
Once the mayor learned of the leak, he called a contractor to repair the leak. Reece said he expects the lead to be repaired by the end of the day on Thursday.
Parents of Gueydan students were notified about the leak by the Vermilion Parish School system.
At around 9:30 a.m., students were evacuated to the civic center near the school.
By 10 a.m., all students had left the civic center and gone home.
When Reece made the phone call to Gueydan High, the school system began a chain reaction to start the evacuation of Gueydan High.
Usually, the parish school system usually sends out a ROBO call to all Gueydan parents to inform them about the evacuation. However, because of the nation’s cell phone trouble on Thursday, it was almost impossible to know if all parents received the ROBO phone or text message from the school system.
School Superintendent Tommy Byler said Plan B had to be implemented to inform the Gueydan parents about the evacuation.
“There was no way to know if the parents received the text or phone call,” Byler said.
The backup plan was to post the Gueydan evacuation on the school’s app and put it on Facebook, hoping a parent could see it while sitting at their computer.
Also, the school system relied on District Safety Officer Brooks David, Risk Manager Scott Myers, and Assistant Superintendent Marc Turner to help school personnel ensure a smooth and safe campus release.
Byler said he kept in touch with the risk-management team, using a walkie-talkie, because of the cell phone issue.
“They were put to a test, and we handled it well,” Byler said.