HANFORD, Calif. (KFSN) — Wearing an arm sling for his broken clavicle and with an injured black eye, 8-year-old James reflects on Monday afternoon.
“All I remember is when I was going out from school, the roof fell on me,” recalls James.
He was waiting to be picked up at Washington Elementary School in Hanford when the unthinkable happened.
A portion of the ceiling stucco at the school’s amphitheater collapsed without warning.
“As he was walking by, the whole thing kind of collapsed on him. It sounded like the one piece landed on top of his head and that knocked him over, and then another piece landed on top of him after he fell,” explains James’ mother, Diana Harrah.
The debris struck two students. Both were taken to the hospital and released the same day.
Diana, who is a school nurse at a different district, recalls getting the frightening call from her husband, Shawn Harrah, who was there to pick up their son.
“I was able to get there, check on him, talk to him and let him know I was there, and I got a hold of her as quickly as I could,” recalls Shawn.
“I know when I got the call, my heart just dropped and I was so scared. I raced quite a bit, quite fast to get here,” remembers Diana.
The school district released a statement, explaining that the school is closed until December 1.
On Tuesday, engineers and an architect inspected the building.
Diana is feeling grateful for the prompt response from the staff and first responders.
“We are incredibly thankful that certain things happened, part of the wall, the barrier that took part of the weight and his backpack. His book were bent in half and they were pretty thick, so I feel he had an armor on him with his backpack,” mentions Diana.
Despite suffering a concussion and some bruising, James is keeping a positive attitude and looking forward to seeing his friends in a few weeks.
“I think they might be impressed,” James continues, “Because a roof fell on me. A roof fell only on me!”
Students will continue learning remotely.
In the meantime, the family shares they hope this never happens again.
