Muskogee Students Practice Surprise Evacuation Drill

Muskogee Public Schools put a revamped emergency plan to the test Monday. The district reworked the plan earlier this year.

To make sure it was effective, school leaders held an emergency evacuation Monday afternoon at Harris Jobe Elementary, the drill was realistic for both parents and kids.

School leaders in Muskogee said the drill was certainly a learning experience, but kids did everything they were supposed to.

"As we watch the news we are seeing a lot more emergencies are happening during school hours; we just want to make sure out students at Harris Jobe are as safe as possible," said Principal, Dr. Justin Walker.

So they put the safety plan to a test, without warning, at the end of the school day. Kids loaded the buses in six minutes.

"They were a little excited. They were kind of loud till they knew what was going on. They knew what a drill was," said teacher Trish Brewster.

As soon at the drill began, Muskogee elementary parents were warned to expect the emergency exercise, which would change their daily routine.

Although orderly, there were a few concerns.

"What we found out, is, we needed a lot of signs to direct parents so they know where to touch up at Harris Jobe. When you move to an alternate location we need a lot of signs to direct everybody," Wayne Johnson with Harris Jobe elementary said.

The principal at Harris Jobe said some 200 kids were at the Muskogee Civic Center and they volunteered for this because this is something that can benefit the city.