On Friday, March 31, a tornado made landfall about 30 miles from Conway. Students were in the fifth period when they learned that they would be let out of school within the hour due to precautionary measures taken by the district. The tornado was expected to pass by Conway shortly after school would be let out on a normal schedule, and district officials wanted to make sure that students could get home safely. Shortly after dismissal, sirens went off and students who hadn’t left were rushed back into the school. Eventually, the sirens stopped, and students were allowed to go home.

     Although the category EF3 tornado missed Conway, some areas of the state weren’t so lucky. The largest recipients of the tornado damage were Wynne and Little Rock, both of which are receiving disaster relief help as they attempt to rebuild. Wynne High School has been destroyed, and North Little Rock high school has suffered significant damage to athletic facilities. Burns Park, NLR’s baseball field, has been completely destroyed.

     Conway students were happy about the early release from school but worry about the tornado trumped the jovial feelings for most. Because of the significant damage in neighboring communities, it’s hard to feel happy about the near-miss. Conway senior Hudson Wallace went to Little Rock to help with disaster relief, saying, “It was very sad to see so much destruction in a location close to home. It made me realize how lucky we were to avoid this catastrophe.”