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Blue Ridge Unified details wildfire evacuation plan, expands off‑duty safety officer coverage
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Wright told the board the district has developed a three‑stage wildfire response — remote instruction, orderly early release, and full evacuation/shelter — and will drill evacuations after spring testing. The district also said a grant will allow use of off‑duty safety officers (SSOs) to provide additional on‑campus protection.
Dr. Wright, superintendent of Blue Ridge Unified School District No. 32 (4397), told the board the district has adopted a three‑stage wildfire response: shift to remote instruction when fire danger threatens campus; perform an orderly early release if a nearby fire develops during the school day; and, if evacuation is necessary with no time to release students, shelter at an identified offsite location in Snowflake.
"The goal is to get everybody from A to B and to do that in a safe and orderly fashion," Dr. Wright said, describing plans to use the junior high as the primary on‑campus shelter if conditions make moving students offsite unsafe. He said the junior high could hold up to 2,000 people and offers restrooms and kitchen facilities that would support an extended sheltering period.
The nut graph: the district framed the plan around student safety and logistical limits. Leadership acknowledged bus capacity constraints and the extra staffing and equipment needed to move students with significant medical or mobility needs. Dr. Wright said the district is working with county fire and law enforcement on drills, reunification procedures and identification of shelter sites.
Board members and staff described several practical steps the district will take. The administration said it will reduce vegetation near campus, run a staff drill to move students to the junior high after spring testing, and then hold larger exercises focused on organized evacuation. The superintendent said some students will require "three or four adults" for safe transport, and the district is identifying the additional staffing and medical supplies that would be necessary.
On safety staffing, Dr. Wright reported the district secured grant authority to hire off‑duty officers as school safety officers (SSOs). "This grant ... will allow us to have these officers and provide another level of protection and first response," Kimberly Dugdale, the district CFO, said. The officers will generally work on overtime/off‑duty schedules and rotate; if the district secures a formal school resource officer (SRO) contract with Pinetop Lakeside Police Department, the SRO would be a consistent person assigned to campus, administrators said.
Administrators said they will hold a community meeting with local fire and law enforcement to explain evacuation plans and urge parents not to drive to schools during an emergency — a step the district said could worsen traffic and hamper emergency response. "Please do not rush to the school. Traffic is going to be horrible and you're just going to make it more desperate for everybody," Dr. Wright said.
The board did not take formal action on the plan at the meeting; Dr. Wright said drills and additional planning steps would follow completion of spring testing.
Looking ahead, the administration plans to test the shelter and evacuation procedures in staged drills, refine reunification protocols for families, and continue coordination with county and town public‑safety partners.
