2 students hospitalized after apparent tornado strikes Dothan, Alabama school
Two students in Dothan, Alabama were hospitalized Monday when an apparent tornado struck Dothan Preparatory Academy, causing significant damage to the roof of the school's gymnasium.
Five students were injured when the storm struck just before 12:45 p.m. local time, Dothan fire officials confirmed to USA TODAY. The Montgomery Advisor − a part of the USA TODAY Network − reported that the damage occurred around 1 p.m. local time.
Dothan Fire Department Deputy Chief Chris Etheredge said that the rest of the school, which serves seventh and eighth graders, suffered minor damage. Dothan City Schools Superintendent Dennis Coe said in a statement that the storm also caused damage to PASS Academy and Dothan City Virtual School.
The district, located about 105 miles southeast of Montgomery, confirmed that all students and staff had been accounted for.
Crews are surveying the area east of the school for damage and power is being restored to the area, Etheridge told USA TODAY. The USA TODAY Power Outage Tracker shows that as of 3:30 local time, over 3,100 people in Houston County, where Dothan is located, are without power.
"No doubt: the quick actions taken by staff and students saved lives today and caused few injuries at DPA and the adjacent schools," Coe said in the statement.
The Dothan Police Department posted on Facebook that the reunification point for parents to pick up their children is Doug Tew Recreation Center.
This is a developing story.
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