CRYSTAL RIVER, Fla. — Citrus County students are finally able to return to a popular field trip location that was closed for months after being damaged during Hurricane Helene.

The Marine Science Station, a well-known learning center for students to observe and learn about marine life, was closed after being damaged during Hurricane Helene. Now, months after the storm, the station is welcoming back eager students.

“It’s a way to bring alive the standards that the teachers are teaching these kids in the classroom,” said station supervisor Earnie Olsen.

The station is a popular field trip destination for elementary students and even high schoolers enrolled in life science courses.  

Storm damage kept the station closed from September until January.

“There was marsh debris logs everywhere,” said Olsen. “When that water comes in from the Gulf, your marshes and your mangrove swamps help buffer some of that impact from the storm, but it still raises up vegetation that’s buoyant and that floats in here. When the water recedes, all of that material stays behind.”

While indoor areas have suffered, the outdoor areas have rebounded.

“Do you see all the land out here?” Olsen asked a group of fourth-grade students from Central Ridge Elementary. “And all the wetlands out here? We call those parts of our watershed. Because what does the water do when it hits the land? It sheds.”

Olsen said the center supplies fantastic views of the surrounding ecosystem for students.

“Until you get out in it and experience all the ways to experience it, that’s probably going to be the best way for a kid to learn,” Olsen said. “We’re very fortunate to be able to have that opportunity to serve our kids in that way.”

Olsen said efforts to repair indoor classrooms at the station are ongoing, and he hoped the work would be completed soon.