Demolition of Marjory Stoneman Douglas begins – NBC 6 South Florida

A large excavator reached up to the top floor of the three-story classroom building where 17 people died in the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, emitting a heartbreaking noise as She was knocking on a window early Friday as the long-awaited demolition project got underway.

Several family members of the victims stood about 100 yards away in the school parking lot, holding their cellphones to take photos and film the event.

Nearby, Dylan Persaud, who was a student in 2018, watched the destruction begin.

Persaud was standing near the freshman building when the shooting began that day. He lost seven longtime friends and his geography teacher, Scott Beigel, in the shooting.

“I wish it would go away,” he said. “It puts a full stop to the end of the story. They should put up a nice memorial there for the 17th.”

The families of the victims were invited to witness the first blows and to hammer a piece themselves if they wished. Officials plan to complete the weeklong project before the school's 3,300 students return in August from summer vacation. Most were at the elementary school when the shooting happened.

The building had been preserved to serve as evidence during the shooter's trial in 2022. Jurors visited its bullet-riddled and blood-stained rooms, but spared him the death penalty. He is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

Broward County is not alone in destroying a school building after a mass shooting. In Connecticut, Sandy Hook Elementary School was demolished after the 2012 shooting and replaced. In Texas, authorities closed Robb Elementary School in Uvalde after the 2022 shooting and plan to demolish it. The library at Columbine High in Colorado was demolished after the 1999 shooting.

Over the past year, relatives of some victims have accompanied Vice President Kamala Harris, members of Congress, school officials, police officers and about 500 other guests from across the country to tour the building. They mainly demonstrated how improved security measures such as bulletproof glass in door windows, a better alarm system and doors that lock from the inside could have saved lives.

Those who took the tour called it heartbreaking as a sort of time capsule of February 14, 2018. Textbooks and laptops lay open on desks, and wilted Valentine's Day flowers, balloons deflated and abandoned teddy bears were scattered among broken glass. . These objects have now been deleted.

U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a former student of the school, said in a statement Friday that the community was forever changed by the shooting.

“I never thought I would see the high school I graduated from turn into a war zone. What I saw in that building was truly haunting: bullet-riddled windows, homework scattered everywhere, blood in the hallway,” Moskowitz said. “Parkland residents will no longer have to ignore this horrific reminder of our grief. The families of those innocent people killed that day will never be able to turn the page, but simply move forward. »

The Broward County School Board has not decided what the building will be replaced with. Teachers suggested a practice field for the band, Junior ROTC and other groups, connected by a landscaped path to a nearby memorial erected a few years ago. Several of the students killed were members of the band or Junior ROTC.

Some parents want the site to be transformed into a memorial.

Tony Montalto, whose daughter Gina died that day, said in a statement that the demolition is “a necessary step moving forward.” He advocated for school safety programs and a memorial site.

“While we can never erase the pain and memories, we can create a space that honors their legacy and fosters hope for a more secure future,” he said. “That’s why we fight every day to pass meaningful legislation that keeps our family members safe at their schools.” »