Community reacts to devastating fire at Lulu Ross Elementary School

MILFORD, Del.–During the early morning hours on Sunday a fire broke out inside Lulu Ross Elementary School, significantly damaging the lobby, library and front offices of the building.

Carlisle fire chief Brennon Fountain tells WMDT about the initial call.

“So the Carlisle Fire Company of Milford was dispatched to an automatic fire alarm around 4:30 am,” Fountain said. “This wasn’t your normal fire. When you lose a school that is the staple of the community, you realize how many people are affected. Our larger concern right now is for the staff and the families and the children that are affected.”

One of those impacted families is that of fourth grader Hudson Jones.

“Hudson is in fourth grade and he loves school,” Hudson’s mom Amy Jones tells WMDT. “He is feeling a huge loss, this morning he woke up not even 24 hours later and said I miss school.”

School officials are also feeling the loss, to say the least, but are working to pick up the pieces of a school that serves nearly seven hundred students.

In a statement posted to social media, the school district said, in part,

“We are currently working with other state agencies to build a collection of resources for staff and families…” adding “Our district crisis team will be meeting regularly throughout the week and we will provide ongoing updates as decisions are made.”

And on the city level, Milford Mayor Todd Culotta says progress is already underway.

“It’s going to take a little while to come back,” Culotta said. “But we are a strong, resilient community.”

Neighbors of the school and parents of a former student, the Gregory’s share what they will miss most while the school slowly rebuilds.

“Our daughter went here back in the 1990s for second, third, and fourth grade,” Gregory said. “We love listening to the children play, that’s one of the things I’m going to miss terribly.”