TORONTO — Students and staff were evacuated from Eitz Chaim Schools’ Patricia Avenue branch for about an hour-and-a-half last Wednesday after a small electrical fire broke out in the school’s basement.
No one was injured, and property loss – estimated by Toronto Fire Services at less than $500 – was contained to a single closet on the lower level, said Elias Levy, the school’s executive director.
The closet housed several thermostats that controlled the southern wing’s heating and air conditioning systems. The building dates back to the early 1970s, but the wing in question was built more recently, Levy said.
David Eckerman, public information officer for Toronto Fire Services, said a small fire in a pile of papers on the floor of the room was put out with a dry chemical extinguisher.
The papers were the thermostat manuals, which had fallen after catching fire, Levy said.
Following the incident, Levy said, the school called in a representative of the thermostat manufacturer.
“We have not been able to determine an actual cause,” Levy said. The low-voltage thermostats, which were destroyed in the fire, were less than a year old, and the wiring was also new, he added. “The indication was that it was caused by a short circuit in one of the thermostats.”
Seven vehicles from the department arrived at the school just after 11 a.m., and another crew arrived after a second alarm was called in.
A janitor at the school was the first to notice the fire, and a heat alarm went off within seconds, Levy said.
The branch, attended by boys, has about 290 students from grades 1 to 8. Approximately 35 staff members were in the school at the time.
Students and staff re-entered the school after fire services personnel determined that it was safe, Eckerman said.
Although some of the staff were new and the school had not yet held a fire drill following summer vacation, as it was only the second day of school, the evacuation was completed in less than two minutes, Levy said.
Eitz Chaim holds fire drills several times a year, he told The CJN. “The boys exited in an orderly fashion very quickly,” he said. “We consider it a tremendous kiddush Hashem.”
