BELLINGHAM, Wash. -- Whatcom Middle School was engulfed in flames early Thursday morning.
The Bellingham Fire Department responded to reports of a fire starting just after 1 a.m. and found the roof of the building ablaze. (see our photo gallery)
Bellingham Police Lieutenant Rick Succee said flames were still shooting from all parts of the school's roof at 4 a.m.
Firefighters from three other districts, as well as the Mt. Baker chapter of the Red Cross, were called in to assist in fighting the blaze.No injuries have been reported.
The three-story structure has been undergoing seismic retrofitting, and workers were seen welding on the roof as late as 10:30 p.m. Wednesday night.
Bellingham School District spokesperson Tanya Rowe said school is cancelled today and Friday for the nearly 600 students of Whatcom Middle School, and no students or staff should go to the building.
"We will be meeting to develop a plan here shortly and it will take us a little bit of time to do that," Rowe said, "so we just ask our Whatcom families and our staff to stay tuned to our Web site at www.bsd501.org for the latest information."
The fire also apparently caused some spotty power outages around the school, including at the Bellingham Police Department.
AUDIO: KGMI Morning News Extra with current and former Whatcom students
E-Mail
Print
