On Friday, September 9th two fire alarms sounded across campus.  Would this be a sequel to the seven fire alarms pulled two years ago on a rainy day?

    Fortunately, MVR had not risen again as the alarms both went off on their own.  

    According to campus administration, the first fire alarms was cause by a burnt chocolate chip pancake.  Mrs. McFarland suspected too much heat in combination with too much oil.  

    But, the second alarm set off not only another drill, but speculations of another Monte Vista rebellion and more interruptions to come.

    Dr. Ahern was seen by students after the second alarm heading towards the art rooms.  Administration later confirmed once again that it was not a student prank.  Instead, it was an alarm with an older sensor that malfunctioned.

    Both Mrs. McFarland and Athletic Director Mr. Popper repeated that “the investigation is complete” and we have nothing else to worry about.  In fact, Mrs. McFarland believes it was good that the alarms went off in the first place.

    “It is reassuring that we have a system that is ready to go,” she said.

    She expressed her pride in her students and other staff members for their calm responses and for their ability to follow the procedure quickly.  McFarland also talked about the importance of a completely unplanned fire drill.  

    McFarland mentioned our new Vice Principal Mr. Kon who is in charge of fire drills.  She talked about how it was good for him to experience a drill of this kind and for everyone on campus to better prepare for a real life situation.

    “The alarms were doing exactly what they were supposed to do.”

    But, any fire drill causes disruption to the school day.  Minutes for teaching are lost and the typical schedule of the day is disrupted.  This is especially disruptive to the Intensive Special Day classes on campus.

    Teacher, Mrs. Flack, explained that drills can be agitating to her students and the waiting can be troublesome.  But there is one problem all her students face.

    “For all of our students, though, the main issue is lack of predictability,” Mrs. Flack said.  “Consistency is key in an Intensive Special Day Class so when the regular routine is disrupted without warning it can be jarring.”

    She later explained how she can prepare her students for the planned fire drills and the effects can be lessened.  But, she emphasized that the effects of the drill are not long lasting, even with unplanned alarms.

    In order to help her students, Mrs. Flack only suggested following typical drill procedures of being quiet and calm in the halls and being aware if you are evacuating close to them.

    “I would say the best way to help is remain calm in the hallway when walking to the evacuation location…this will help our students stay calm as well because it eliminates some of the already occurring chaos,” Mrs. Flack said.