Thursday, May 14, 2015

MORE DETAILS ON CHS SMOKE CONDITION

We broke the first news on Wednesday about the smoke condition and evacuation of Columbia High School.

Now it turns out it was a fire in a classroom fan.

We received this today from the Maplewood Fire Department:

All fire units responded to 17 Parker Ave. (Columbia High School) at 12:36 p.m. 
on the report of a fire on the first floor.  Arriving firefighters were directed to 
an office near a side door in A wing where CHS principal, Mrs. Aaron, 
said a fan had caught fire. Investigation revealed a moderate smoke 
condition caused by a fan motor burning in a wall above the office. 
 
The fan had been shut off prior to the arrival of the fire department, 
preventing fire from extending beyond the fan motor. The fan was 
disconnected and school officials were going to remove it from the wall. 
The building was mechanically ventilated using the positive-pressure 
ventilation fan. 
 
Once ventilation was complete, students and staff were allowed to return to the
building.

Michael R. Dingelstedt
Chief of Department

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