TULSA, Okla. — Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt and other officials spoke to the media in Tulsa on March 8, after the governor toured damage at Tulsa Tech's Peoria campus and nearby neighborhoods from Friday night's storms.
Alongside the governor were Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols, Oklahoma Office of Emergency Management Director Annie Vest, and other local officials.
The governor said rebuilding Tulsa Tech would be a 2-year project, and the school would use its other
campuses to accommodate students in the interim.
WATCH: Governor Kevin Stitt, Mayor Nichols discuss damage and recovery in north Tulsa:
The governor said damage was extensive, and was thankful the building was empty.
"Fortunately, there are no classes Friday night," said Governor Stitt. "A lot of nights of the week they do have classes, so that's very fortunate that nobody was there, because it could have been really, really bad."
Previous Coverage >>> LIVE BLOG: Storms kill 2 in Okmulgee County
Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols said local and state organizations were already responding to assist people impacted by the storms.
He said during the tour of the damage, he noticed that the campus's storm shelter areas were undamaged.
"All of the areas where students would have gone in the case of an emergency are fine," said Mayor Nichols. "So, the message is, when we have these events, which, as the governor pointed out, we have quite often in Oklahoma, following directions, getting to safe places is really critical."
Annie Vest, director of the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, said 30 structures statewide suffered damage in Friday's storms.
Vest said the department activated the State Emergency Operations Center on Thursday in anticipation of the storm, and teams had been visiting impacted areas since.
She said at this time, the state did not meet the threshold for FEMA assistance, so she was in contact with the Governor's Office of Faith-Based Initiatives and had begun seeing responses.
Vest said her office was also looking into the possibility of assistance through the Small Business Administration.
Officials at Tulsa Tech said all classes at the Peoria Campus were cancelled next week. Students would be updated on when classes would resume by March 23, after Spring Break.
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