After a 4.8 magnitude earthquake on Friday morning in Hunterdon County, NJ that was felt up and down the East Coast, South Orange-Maplewood schools were in a Code Yellow shelter-in-place.
The District sent an email to the school community at 11:33 a.m. stating that the Code Yellow was called to enable the Facilities Department to inspect all district buildings.
Read more about the earthquake here.
Later in the afternoon, the district sent a letter (see below) noting that School Safety and Security Director Stanley Valles was in contact with South Essex Regional Fire Department Chief Joseph Alvarez, “who advised Mr. Valles to call a districtwide Code Yellow – Shelter in Place. All classes and indoor activities continued while outdoor activities were suspended.”
After all buildings and systems were inspected, the Code Yellow was lifted by 11:20 a.m.
The letter also noted issues with the School Messenger system, which the district uses to deliver robocalls, email blasts and text message alerts. The School Messenger company was reporting that sites were loading slowly. The issue was resolved later; until then, the district sent notifications to students and families by Gmail.
Meanwhile, there was a 4.0 aftershock near Gladstone, NJ at approximately 6 p.m., according to media reports. Experts said to expect aftershocks for a few days or up to a week, after an earthquake of this magnitude — which was a rare one for the New Jersey/New York area.
See the full letter here:
April 5, 2024
Dear South Orange & Maplewood School District Students, Families, and Staff,
At approximately 10:25 a.m., people throughout the South Orange & Maplewood School District felt the effects of an earthquake reported to be in Lebanon, N.J.
School Safety and Security Director Stanley Valles was in direct contact with the South Essex Regional Fire Department Chief Joseph Alvarez who advised Mr. Valles to call a districtwide Code Yellow – Shelter in Place. All classes and indoor activities continued while outdoor activities were suspended.
Facilities Director Thomas Giglio and the schools’ custodial chiefs conducted walkthroughs of buildings and found no visual concerns. All mechanical systems were found to be operational, and all boiler rooms were found to be unaffected by the tremors.
After consulting with Chief Alvarez, the Code Yellow Shelter In Place was lifted by 11:20 a.m.
There were problems with the District’s mass notification system, School Messenger, which we use to deliver robocalls, email blasts, and text message alerts. Communications Director Paul Brubaker learned from our School Messenger representatives that the company had received multiple reports of communication sites loading very slowly and that the company reported having “all hands engaged” working on the problem until it was resolved this morning.
Notifications were sent to students and families via gmail until School Messenger resumed its normal operating ability.
I appreciate everyone’s cooperation and responsiveness, and I am very glad that everyone was able to safely resume their normal school day soon after this very unexpected incident had occurred.
Sincerely,
South Orange & Maplewood School District
