WYNNE, Ark. — Monday, leadership for Wynne High School gave an update on their recovery efforts after an EF-3 tornado devastated the small Arkansas town in 2023.
School leaders and students highlighted the small town’s recovery and resiliency just weeks away from the storm’s one-year anniversary.
“It was so different, just one day being at your regular old high school and then the next day, it's completely gone,” said Wynne High junior Michelle Mercado.
Mercado said losing her home and her school during the deadly 2023 tornado was one of the hardest things she’s ever experienced.
“Just seeing that so young and being basically forced to be okay with it,” she said. “You have to move on. You can't just sit there and cry about it.”
After spending nearly a full school year on Wynne High’s temporary campus, she said she and her classmates are finally starting to feel at home.
“It was definitely confusing at first, getting to know where everything is,” Mercado said. “But it feels good to see everyone so comfortable somewhere so fast.”
Wynne Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Moore said the temporary campus will be their home for at least two more years. Its features include 36 classrooms, a science lab, gymnasium and cafeteria. The campus also features tornado shelters, one for each grade. Each one holds about 200 people.
Sophomore Emma Kelley can’t believe how far they’ve come in just one year.
“Even if I had shown myself, I probably wouldn’t’ve believed any of this, or that it would’ve looked like this or felt like this," she said.
As the entire town continues to heal, the school is a reminder that even in the midst of tragedy, there are better days ahead for Wynne.
“It feels good to be here today and just be a normal teenager going to high school,” Mercado said.
School leaders said plans for the one-year anniversary on March 31 will involve honoring the first-responders, other schools and many community members who came together to help them rebuild.
Dr. Moore said the goal is to move into a new rebuilt building in January 2027.