FAIRFIELD, Maine — The event that occurred in Clinton Sunday morning is perfectly described as a tragedy. Three killed, all taken before their sixteenth birthday.
Fifteen-yr-old Thomas Porfirio, 15-yr-old Emily Baker, and her 12-yr-old sister Ashlin Baker were pronounced dead at the scene.
Now, friends and classmates of the victims return to school. Monday was the first day back in class after the fatal accident.
Roberta Hersom is the superintendent of MSAD #49. Hersom said that tragedy has impacted the entire community.
"This is an unimaginable situation that is very painful to all of us," Hersom said
Other school districts reached out in support of the Lawrence senior and junior High Schools. Surrounding towns sent guidance councilors to help with grieving students.
"Our primary goal today was to keep students safe, and give them a space to work through the initial part of it," Hersom added.
Hersom said that the councilors will be on-site for at least a week to help students in all sorts of ways. Common areas in the two schools were designated for groups to talk about what happened. Private conversations were also made available for students.
MSAD #49 does have an action plan for tragic events like this. The plan was implemented as school officials gathered just a few hours after they heard about the crash.
"It's a very different circumstance when you're planning and drafting and articulating and writing for some event, in theory, but then it actually occurs," Hersom said. "The schools responded, were prepared, for today and are getting students what they need."