Students and staff were evacuated from Long Lots Elementary School after a fire was discovered by a school officer within one of the auditorium walls on Wednesday May 25. The school officer pulled the fire alarm around noon, signaling the safe evacuation and a response from the fire department.
“The fire department responded with [four] engines, [one] ladder truck, the Safety Officer and the Shift Commander,” Westport Assistant Fire Chief Jeffrey Goodman said to Patch. “The police officer who found the location of the fire used a fire extinguisher to initially put out the fire. The fire department gained further access to the inside of the wall and extinguished the remaining fire.”
The fire, which was isolated to a wall within a wall in the auditorium, was determined by the fire marshal’s office to be caused by an electrical short. After the fire was extinguished, students returned to class at 1 p.m.; however, there was an early dismissal at 1:15 p.m. as a protective measure to ensure safety.
“The quick actions of the police officer and execution of a well-practiced evacuation plan contributed to this successful operation,” Gootman said.