ROCK SPRINGS — Flooding at Walnut Elementary School today will result in students and staff temporarily moving to Desert View Elementary until the water-damage repairs can be completed.

The announcement of the school’s flooding was made this evening by Sweetwater County School District (SCSD) No. 1 Superintendent Kelly McGovern on the ParentSquare app.

“In the early morning hours today, Walnut Elementary had a 2-inch fire sprinkler line fail due to the cold weather which resulted in flooding in the gym, classrooms, and office areas including walls, ceilings, and flooring,” McGovern said in the message. “Other damage to the school occurred in flooring and materials being saturated from water running down the corridors and seeping under doors and walls.”

With the assistance of the Rock Springs Fire Department, school maintenance personnel were quickly able to stop the water flow and minimize the damage.

“However, due to the water flow, SCSD No. 1 is unable to hold in-person school at Walnut until repairs are completed and the damage is repaired and safe for staff and students,” the message states. “The District is working to have the repairs and corrective action completed as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
 
Beginning on Tuesday, January 4, Walnut Elementary students and staff will be relocated into Desert View Elementary School at 1900 Desert Blvd. Starting on Tuesday, all Walnut staff and students will attend in-person school with Desert View staff and students. School start and end times will not change for either school. Transportation services, nutrition services, and in-person instruction will continue to occur for all the Desert View and Walnut students with their regular classes and teachers. Transportation services remain at their current bus stop times.

More info for students normally walking to Walnut school will be forthcoming. The District places a high priority on providing uninterrupted in-person instruction for the students.
 
While repairs are made at Walnut School, work also continues at Overland Elementary which is currently under renovation to serve as the new home for the Head Start program beginning in the 2022-2023 school year. Westridge School currently houses the Head Start’s early childhood program.

“The District selected Desert View as the temporary home for the Walnut students and staff so that they would be in a facility familiar with K-3 daily operations that would best meet the needs of students during this time,” McGovern said.
 
Administration from Desert View Elementary and Walnut Elementary will be sending additional information to their specific school communities prior to starting school on Tuesday.