Brief fire lit in third-floor bathroom

Building services workers worked to extinguish a fire in a third-floor boys' bathroom at 10 a.m. today. Somebody lit a fire in a trash can, according to security personnel. It was quickly extinguished and nobody was injured.

According to Security Team Leader Edward Reddick, a teacher reported smoke in the boys' bathroom next to room 319. A fire was lit in the plastic trash can, melting the trash can and the metal sprinkler system built into the ceiling.

Building service workers used fans to get the smoke out of the area and then secured the bathroom, Reddick said. The Montgomery County Fire Department deemed that the fire was contained and thoroughly extinguished so that a school wide evacuation was not necessary. "The fire was put out in a matter of minutes," Reddick said.

Reddick confirmed that the bathroom fire was intentional. Security personnel are in the process of using security camera footage to identify suspects. According to Reddick, there are no leads so far.

In December 2005, a student intentionally lit a series of bathroom trashcans on fire similar to this incident. However, Reddick said that this event was an isolated event and unrelated.