Preliminary estimates show the devastating EF-3 tornado that ripped through Ruston likely destroyed Louisiana Tech’s softball, baseball, and soccer fields.
Athletic Director Tommy McClelland says the estimates aren’t final, but they do not expect at this time that the facilities are usable.
“They are beyond repair, and once we have that official report we have to determine what it would cost to rebuild exactly what we have in today’s dollars.”
Two people were killed in the deadly incident last month.
Between insurance and federal funds, McClelland expects to have some funds to work with to get those three program’s back up and running. But there’s a major question left to answer, do they rebuild on old ground, or pick new locations for the three fields?
“Because of the total devastation that we have experienced, along with the fact that we were already undergoing master planning for our campus, how do these things dovetail together?”
While they sort through the wreckage, the school is working to find out where the teams will be playing for their upcoming seasons. McClelland says they’re hoping to find a season long, single location solution for all three teams, but if not…
“It could be a scenario in which we have a “home game” in this town, and then a “home game” in this town, in order to get through the season. Those are not ideal.”
