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Rainy weather causing headaches as repairs continue on leaking ceiling at South Oak Cliff High School

“There are crews working on the building," Pastor Maxie Johnson said. “I’m going to make sure that this is done right and correctly.”

Repairs to fix a leaking roof at South Oak Cliff High School continue, as the recent rainy weather creates more headaches. 

“When it rains outside, it's raining inside in certain parts of our building,” said Dallas ISD trustee Pastor Maxie Johnson.

In the years before its recent renovation, South Oak Cliff High School students shared videos on social media of rodents, termites, flooding, mold and drinking fountains covered with bags after water contamination concerns were revealed. 

After the school's reopening in January 2020, students marveled at the $52 million top-to-bottom renovations at the school.

But the new school had maintenance issues just three months after it was unveiled to the public. There was a leak that caused sewage to spill out on the campus.

Last week, pictures and video surfaced again, showing the newly renovated South Oak Cliff High School is now dealing with leaking ceilings and pipes. There were trash cans collecting water in some areas. Staff and students are having to relocate to different areas of the building.

RELATED: Community demands answers as to why ceilings are leaking at the newly-renovated South Oak Cliff H.S. 

This week, repairs to fix the leaks continue, but the recent rain has not helped the problem.  

New images from inside the school reveal leaks from the ceiling, which still has several stained or missing tiles. Some described the lunchroom as looking like a construction zone, after weekend rain exacerbated existing issues.

“There are crews working on the building, and we're going to make sure this is done,” Johnson said. “I’m going to make sure that this is done right and correctly.”

School advocates, including Johnson, argue it’s too soon after the renovation for this campus to have problems like this.

“When you have people trying to do a cookie cutter and not do the process right, this is what you get in certain areas,” Johnson said. “And the Black and Brown community, we experienced it the most.” 

Dallas ISD told WFAA Tuesday that South Oak Cliff High School is not the only campus currently undergoing repairs: crews are also fixing various issues at other schools in the district, officials said. 

Rainy weather can also make repair work difficult to complete, the district said.

However, the district was able to identify the problem that caused leaks in the cafeteria – it had to do with a clogged drain associated with a cooling tower. Crews are currently working to fix it. 

Dallas ISD said representatives have been proactively meeting with campus staff and the community about the issues.

As for a target date for repairs, Dallas ISD said in a statement, “ASAP as weather permits." 

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