A strong smell of gas inside the Cloquet Senior High building led to a two-hour delay of classes Thursday for both the high school and the middle school Thursday, March 7.

According to a district press release, the administration was notified of the smell at 7:30 a.m., and students and staff were immediately evacuated to two nearby churches — St. Paul’s Lutheran for CHS and Journey Christian Church for CMS — previously designated as emergency shelters.

CHS principal Steve Battaglia said close to 150 high school students were evacuated, while the district’s emergency phone system man...