Students displaced by California Camp Fire return to school

Kids in Calif. return to school after Camp Fire

In an effort to continue education for students in Paradise, California following the fires, laptops are being administered to allow students to do online programs while the city recovers from the Camp Fire; Claudia Cowan reports.

CHICO, Calif. – More than three weeks after their lives were upended by the devastating Camp Fire, thousands of Northern California students have embarked on a new normal.

Most of the teenagers who went to school in Paradise are checking in at the Chico Mall, about 12 miles away. Here, a former LensCrafters store has been converted into a pop-up learning center where students can check in, update their contact information, and reconnect with their teachers and friends. They're also picking up special laptops to register for online learning programs to continue their studies from wherever they're staying.

A junior at Paradise High and member of the basketball team, 17-year-old Triton Grivette said he's glad to get back into some semblance of routine.

"I'm excited to see all my friends and teachers," Grivette says. "School gives me something to do other than just sit in our apartment in Chico. At least we've been able to play basketball – we've had four games since the fire, and we're undefeated. That's helping our morale."

Some kids are still living in hotels or with family members or friends after the fast-moving fire swept through their neighborhood, consuming thousands of homes.

Students from six other schools burned in the fire are being bused to campuses farther away, in Oroville and Durham. Existing school sites have made room and individuals have donated all kinds of supplies.

But with many families having moved out of the area, officials said they'll have a better idea of who is enrolling, and where, by the end of the week. Nearly all the teachers are returning to provide a familiar and comfortable face to the kids who do make it back.

District officials said they're still working on a long-term solution for when school resumes after holiday break in January.

Many kids were at school when the Camp Fire started the morning of November 8. Officials said 5,000 students lost their homes, along with hundreds of teachers and staff.

"We have probably five to 700 teachers without a home. It’s just shocking," said Tim Taylor, the Butte County Schools Superintendent. "I’ve heard of a school where all 43 employees lost their home."

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Educators say the first lesson of survival is to stay positive.

"Paradise is so much more than a school building or a location on a map," said Kelli Gordon, principal of Achieve Charter High School. "Paradise will be Paradise and come together no matter where we are, even if our school comes together in a building in Chico. That's okay. We're still Paradise and we're still together as a community."

FILE - The burned remains of the Paradise Elementary school is seen in a Friday, Nov. 9, 2018 file photo, in Paradise, Calif. Monday marks a return to school and some semblance of routine for thousands of children who lost their homes and schools in the wildfire. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)

In the meantime, more residents are being allowed back into burned out-neighborhoods. With a law enforcement escort, they can spend a few hours seeing what's left of their home and look for items to salvage.

The fire killed 88 people, making the Camp Fire the deadliest in California history. The death toll, which kept fluctuating, has not climbed in a week.

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Sheriff Kory L. Honea of Butte County, who led the search for human remains, said he is “very optimistic” that anyone still missing would be found alive.

There are now 25 people listed as unaccounted for, a fraction of the 1,300 listed as missing two weeks ago. According to the Butte County Sheriff, the search for more victims has officially ended.