Jersey Superintendent Outlines Response to Jersey Middle School Flooding

JERSEYVILLE — A water main break flooded Jersey Middle School on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, prompting officials to redirect students to the high school or allow them to stay home with an excused absence while crews assessed the damage.

Jersey Community School District Superintendent Brad Tuttle said water entered the middle school building, leading officials to determine that students would not attend classes there Thursday. The district was still assessing the disruption and developing a plan for classes beyond Thursday, he said.

Tuttle said three or four outside groups were involved in the initial response, with separate groups addressing the water pipes and water damage.

Principal Niki Egelhoff notified parents of the change early on Thursday morning.

“All middle school students will be routed to the high school,” Egelhoff said in the message. “If your student is a car rider, please drop them off as close to 8:15 a.m. as possible.”

The district was considering emergency days or remote learning if the disruption continued, Tuttle said. He said Illinois schools can use emergency days for weather-related disruptions and that he believed the state would approve their use if needed for this situation.

Principal Egelhoff sent another message out to the parents and thanked them for their patience and flexibility today.

"There will be no school for JCMS students tomorrow, Friday, Nov. 13, and Monday, Nov. 16," she said. "These potentially count as emergency days and are for middle school students only. We are actively working on the next steps, and we will share plans from JCMS as soon as possible."

"A water main break has caused some flooding damage to approximately one-third of our building," she continued. "Our custodial staff, maintenance crew, and outside professionals are currently on site working hard to clear the water and assess the damage."

The boys' basketball game that was scheduled this evening will be moved to the Susnig Center and will be played at the originally scheduled times.

Tuttle said the district would communicate its plans to parents once officials determined the next steps. Updates would also be available on the Jersey Community School District Facebook page. He also said that as of Thursday morning, an exact timeline could not be set for the cleanup.

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