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New schools in Illinois will be required to have storm shelters

A little more than a year after an EF-5 tornado destroyed Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Oklahoma killing seven, the walls are up on a new $12 million...

A little more than a year after an EF-5 tornado destroyed Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Oklahoma killing seven, the walls are up on a new $12 million school.

The new school features a hallway that turns into a FEMA certified storm shelter when the doors close. It can hold every student in the school.

An increase in storm shelters are also making their way to Illinois. On August 15, 2014, Governor Quinn signed HB 2513 into law, requiring all new school building construction governed by the Health/Life Code for Public Schools to have a storm shelter.

The shelters must meet the minimum requirement set by the International Code Council and the National Storm Shelter Association.

The bill becomes law January 1, 2015.

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