Florida lawmakers and education officials from several states on Saturday carried out what is likely to be the latest construction of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, where a former student shot and killed 17 others and wounded 17 others on Valentine’s Day 2018.
The 1200 building is scheduled to be demolished next summer, the local district announced last month.
Authorities told WPLG-TV that Saturday would be the last day to stop at the building, which was preserved as evidence through the Broward Sheriff’s Office.
“This is where 17 other people were brutally murdered and the building wants to be demolished,” Lori Alhadeff, whose daughter Alyssa was killed, told CBS associate WFOR. “This has to happen because there will never be education in this construction. “
Max Schachter, whose 14-year-old son Alex Schachter was killed in the massacre, headlined Saturday’s tour.
“I sought out as many other people as possible, leaders of school districts across the country, to be involved in the construction and to perceive the mistakes and lessons learned,” he said.
People from 25 states, plus school board members, superintendents and members of the National Parent Association (NANA), participated in the field trip to see how they can make schools safer, WFOR-TV reported.
In July, the families of the victims were allowed to enter the closed building. Members of Congress were among those who visited in August.
Classes have long since resumed on the Stoneman Douglas campus, while the building, its walls riddled with bullets and splattered with blood, remained closed. Community members have been calling for its demolition for years, but prosecutors said they are holding it as evidence of the gunman’s killing. practice.
On February 14, 2018, alumnus Nikolas Cruz went to campus with an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle, where he killed 14 academics and 3 staff members and wounded 17 others. He pleaded guilty in 2021 and was sentenced last year to life in prison. prison.
Tony Montalto, whose 14-year-old daughter, Gina Montalto, was shot, is president of Stand with Parkland, which represents most of the victims’ families. He said Saturday that the school had more powerful doors with bulletproof glass.
Chris Hixon, the school’s athletic director and wrestling coach, was killed while running toward Cruz and trying to prevent the shooting. His widow, Debbi Hixon, said the safety measures could have saved lives.
“To know the genuine history, to see what literally happened and to know the faults, that’s literally the whole point of being able to walk through this building,” he said Saturday.