Riverdale Elementary School set to reopen after hurricane flooding

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Orange County Public Schools said the district is on track for Riverdale Elementary School to re-open for the start of the school year, which is about a month away.

The school has been closed since Hurricane Ian hit.

Now, parents who live in the neighborhood just across the street said they are excited about the news of the school’s reopening.

Jose Sanchez described his 7-year-old stepdaughter, a student at Riverdale, and said, “She loves her teachers; she’s really excited to go back.”

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When Hurricane Ian hit, water surrounded the entire school and made its way inside.

At the time, OCPS communications director Scott Howat had said the school received 2.5 feet of floodwater.

He told News 6 clean-up crews first had to clean up, mop and sanitize before they could start sorting through things that needed to be discarded.

In the interim, OCPS sent the students of Riverdale to learn at East River High School while repairs were being made.

“The other school was great, but the traffic is really bad,” Sanchez said.

He said the ride to and from school has been difficult this past year with the added traffic, adding that his wife has had to make adjustments.

But Sanchez said his stepdaughter has adapted, telling News 6, “She was a little nervous, but she was excited at the same time, you know. She was like, ‘Oh, this is something different.”

OCPS said there is a reopening ceremony planned for next month.

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