It was the last week of school before winter break for the Allen staff and students. However, on that Monday, Jan. 12, teachers walked down the large main hallway into A Hall where damp carpets, bent books and damaged walls awaited them.

A pipe had started leaking on Jan. 11, which caused the majority of A Hall to flood. Teachers had to be relocated and students had to be redirected. It could have been complete chaos, but the staff and student body worked together and repairs were finished in about two and a half weeks.

Jared Miller, the associate principal of administrative services, was responsible for the repair of A Hall. He said he is proud of how the students and staff handled the flood.

“I have nothing except praise for our teachers and staff,” Miller said. “The teachers were great to work with, and the students were resilient and adapted very well.”

A Hall was restored, but new additions were also implemented at the entrance of A Hall for the increased safety of the students and staff.

“The doors that were installed are the new fire doors,” Miller said. “These doors offer a safer alternative to the garage style doors.”

Miller said that he feels great about the finished product, but hopes that the school doesn’t have to encounter circumstances like that again.

“The floods reminded me of the strength of the Allen High School team,” Miller said. “When in need, everyone pulls together to help each other out.”

Karen Hunnicutt, an IB Psychology teacher, had to be relocated. In fact, the flood started in her classroom. Therefore, water damage ruined many of her items including the carpet and the walls, as well as books and computers.

“I lost my posters, and my books are all kind of bent, and my cabinets don’t shut,” Hunnicutt said. “Georgia, the service dog that was being trained at the time, was high stepping through water that morning trying to find and help me pull out items from my room. She was a little sad when she saw her soggy dog bed that was no longer usable.”

However, Hunnicutt said that the flood was handled well, and the teachers were well taken care of by the school.

“That week was a little bit different than normal because it was exam week,” Hunnicutt said. “The administration was fantastic. They got me another spot, and I had my exam on Canvas, so they allowed me to have computer access.”

If this sort of disaster happened during a normal school week, class schedules wouldn’t work out as well. Also, the two-week break following the leak allowed enough time to work on repairs without disrupting class time.

“I came back that Monday [after winter break], and I was able to move into my room about halfway through that day,” Hunnicutt said.

She has many people to thank for getting her room back. In her opinion, the school did a great job at rebuilding what had been lost during the flood.

“The students have been getting my room put back together,” Hunnicutt said. “It’s an event that occurred that the school handled extremely well and took care of us as far as putting us into a spot and back into our rooms as quickly as possible.”

Hunnicutt said that she believes lessons can be learned from this experience, and she is thankful that nobody was hurt in this endeavor.

“The one big lesson is to keep life in perspective,” Hunnicutt said. “The most important things are family, friends and faith. I’m thankful the school got everything repaired and useable again.”