Photo Credit: Jonah Neville[/caption]A little over a month ago, an ice storm hit Hillsborough. This led to the utter destruction of the fencing at the front of the Orange High School baseball field. The Panthers have not played a home game in over a month and are clawing to be back in their friendly confines. A fencing company is currently working to fix it as soon as possible.
The third base side dugout fencing is coming along, but the fencing behind the home plate and the first base side dugout is still currently being worked on. The bricks also still need to be set up. When the baseball coach, Dean Dease, was asked when the field should be finished, he replied, “Well, due to the large amount of damage done to the field, and with three different fencing companies working on it, we’ve been trying to get the communication down, so hopefully the field will be done at the latest by the end of the year.”
Photo credit: Maddie Norwood[/caption]A “shade house” on the OHS campus near the agriculture buildings collapsed during the snowstorm on Thursday, February 13. The shade house was owned by the school. OHS Principal Jason Johnson does not currently know the cost of the damages, but repair work should begin this week. No one was injured, although a few plants died and some equipment was destroyed.
According to Ag teacher Jordan Moore, the structure “collapsed due to the intense weight of snow that covered” it. The shade house was the third structure to be damaged because of a weather event. Moore did not know how old it was because “the foundation has been there for many years.” The shade house “has been improved and re-done many times since it was built originally.”
The only class that used the structure was a horticulture class taught by David Latta. Most of the tools damaged by the collapse can be salvaged. Moore said that “some [of the damaged material] is going to be salvaged and hopefully recycled or put to a use on later projects. Steel and some materials are still usable in other capacities.”
A “multi-functional learning lab for… hands-on work and outdoor learning” will “more than likely” be built in place of the collapsed shade house once the structure has been cleaned up, Moore said. The greenhouse will support Latta’s plants so his class will be able to operate normally without the shade house.
Johnson said he is “not sure” about the damage cost because the “insurance agency has to give estimates.” He does not know about the repair schedule either, because “a lot of it’s insurance.” He hopes it will take “just a couple of weeks.” He also is not certain who will be doing the repair work, but the Orange County Schools maintenance department will probably be in charge.
Johnson said the area is off-limits to students, and that students who aren’t in Ag classes have no reason to be near the shade house.
Johnson said, “[I] think it’s unfortunate... that it happened,” but he is glad no one was hurt. Moore said, “It is always sad to undergo any type of loss to school facilities and tools. However, we are excited for the chance to make an improvement to the area and make the best out of the tough situation.”