Poland school fire under investigation

May 14-- May 14--POLAND -- The Poland Central School District experienced a fire in the early morning hours before school Tuesday.

The fire, according to a news release from the district, originated in the basement of the building, in the storage area under the sixth grade classrooms, at approximately 2:30 a.m.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, according to Poland Fire Chief Michael Galluzzo.

School district employees were notified of the fire by Poland's 24/7 Central Station Monitoring Service which calls staff members and 911 when detectors inside the school sense smoke or heat, according to the release. The Poland Volunteer Fire Company, district personnel and several neighboring fire agencies, including Newport, Barneveld and Holland Patent, responded to the scene.

"We put it out pretty quickly. Basically, the fire was contained to the basement," said Galluzzo. "... All fire agencies aggressively attacked the situation and got it under control relatively fast."

Smoke was a primary concern throughout the morning and resulted in the need to close school. With investigators examining the building, only essential employees were on campus throughout the day.

Canceling classes was only one aspect of the response by district employees, according to the release. District personnel contacted the district's insurance company, responded to agency interviews and questions from Homeland Security and Emergency Services. Vendors were also contacted to examine the building's elevator and fire alarm systems.

The basement storage area in the school's 2003 addition suffered heavy smoke and water damage, according to Galluzzo. The sixth grade wing suffered moderate smoke damage and will be require more extensive cleaning, according to the release. The remainder of the building suffered minor smoke exposure.

As a safety precaution and to extend the time for initial cleanup, the district will be closed Wednesday and will not transport to programs at other schools. The Poland campus will also be closed on Thursday; transportation will be provided to programs at other schools on Thursday. Plans for Friday will be determined after initial cleanup and announced to the school community, according to the release.

Upcoming sporting events will continue whenever possible, according to the release.

District officials said they are extremely grateful for the response by the Poland Volunteer Fire Company, the Newport Fire Department, Herkimer County Emergency Services and the other agencies that assisted, adding they are "extremely proud of our school building and look forward to getting it back up and running in the near future."

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