The flash floods of Jan. 22, 2024, were particularly devastating for one elementary school in the La Mesa Spring Valley District. Bancroft Elementary was filled with more than 400 students in TK through fifth grade who had just started their day. That morning, the weather unexpectedly turned to a pounding downpour of rain. The Great Flood of 2024: NBC Looks Back a Year Later flooding 7 hours ago One year after devastating Jan. 22 floods, residents still rebuilding Teachers and staff moved quickly to keep everyone safe. Callie Scher is the school’s social worker. While wading through the water, she collected as many children as she could to take to the auditorium, which had not yet flooded. Previous coverage: Spring Valley Feb 23, 2024 Students, staff to return to Spring Valley school that closed after Jan. 22 floods Feb 26, 2024 Bancroft Elementary reopens after flood damage Mar 12, 2024 4th grader sells hundreds of dollars in handmade bracelets for San Diego flood victims “How do we get kids to safety, and how high is the water going to go?” Scher recalled. “When is the rain going to stop, and what do we do if it doesn’t stop?” The water rushed down hill and covered the campus. The district later learned that a major county storm drain just a few yards away had been clogged for months with branches and debris. The unprecedented amount of rain falling fast and furious created the perfect storm. “I just remember, like, all water on me,” said 10-year-old Sofia Aguilar, who is now in the fifth grade and one of the school’s safety ambassadors. “I was soaked.” Sofia was in her fourth-grade classroom when the heavy rains started. “At the time, nobody was listening,” Sofia told NBC 7 recently. “It was just loud. Everyone was yelling, and I think they were scared. They were crying.” Students were put on school buses and transported off campus to safety. Thirty-four classrooms and other offices were destroyed by water damage, mud and whatever else the raging flood dragged through. For more than a month, students and staff were housed at the nearby Spring Valley Academy while reconstruction started. Bancroft Elementary staff members used this makeshift space at the nearby Spring Valley Academy as their temporary office for more than a month last year. With the help of state funding, the district was able to rebuild and restore the buildings at a cost of $1 million. Nathan Saucedo, the school’s principal, led his team through the recovery and reopening. “Our kids deserve the best,” Saucedo said. “We were able to make that happen in just six weeks. One of the changes is making sure, aesthetically, it looked just like before. But it is better as you can tell, walking the campus [now].” The community has come together better, too. In the past year, there have been group family dinners, food drives and other support. A year later, I feel not as worried, knowing that I could be more prepared just in case another incident like that happens again.Franklin Moreira, 11-year-old Bancroft Elementary student “There are still people that have a lot of need because of the loss from the the flood,” said David Feliciano, La Mesa Spring Valley District’s superintendent. “It definitely was something that brought people together, and I would say relationships are stronger because of it.” Fifth-grade student Franklin Moreira, 11, feels he learned a valuable lesson: “A year later, I feel not as worried, knowing that I could be more prepared just in case another incident like that happens again,” Franklin said.