I used to teach in this school district and my school was housed in Douglass for a while. Student misbehavior...oh my.
05:40 PM CST on Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Tom Planchet / Eyewitness News
A rash of fires has been set at Recovery District schools over the past six days - six at Douglass High alone - worrying fire officials who believe the alleged pranks could become deadly.
The fire at Douglass High Tuesday afternoon ended the school day about two and a half hours early for students. The blaze started in a second-floor art classroom, which was empty at the time.
It was the sixth fire at Douglass, the other fires began in trash cans and in the boys and girls bathrooms. Tuesday's fire did the most damage, ruining nearly one-quarter of the art room.
Fire officials said that at the same time as the Douglass fire, two small fires broke out at Recovery District schools - one at Walter Cohen High and one at Thurgood Marshall Middle.
Captain Terry McHardy said he believes students have been starting the fires as a prank, but he says they are literally playing with fire.
"They might be doing it as a practical joke, but they don't understand how fast fire spreads. These are older buildings. If these fires go undetected for a period of time, they can endanger all of the students at the school."
I can't spell. You know what I meant, I'd been up for 38 hours.
Posted by: ricola at December 12, 2008 8:11 PM