AMHERST — Small fires intentionally set in bathrooms at Amherst Regional High School Thursday morning led to students being dismissed early from the building, and all athletic events being canceled.
For Amherst Fire Chief Tim Nelson, the incidents in which towel dispensers were set on fire is cause for concern.
“A small fire can cause great disruption in terms of the school day, and can also create harm. It’s malicious, as well,” Nelson said. “It’s wrong all the way around”
Nelson said firefighters responded shortly after 10 am. to the initial alarm, discovering that someone had lit a bathroom’s towel dispenser on fire, probably using a cigarette lighter. While firefighters were on scene ventilating that bathroom and evacuating the building, a second fire, also involving a towel dispenser, was discovered. That prompted fire and police investigators to order school administrators to close the school for the day.
A message sent to parents from Superintendent Michael Morris before noon announced the incidents and the early dismissal.
“This morning, several small, separate fires were set in bathrooms at Amherst Regional High School,” Morris wrote. “All were rapidly contained and no one was injured.”
Because special bus runs had to be arranged to get students from the high school to their homes in Amherst, Pelham, Shutesbury and Leverett, students were let out from the school between 12:15 and 1:15 p.m., and parents and guardians picking up their children were asked not to arrive before 1 p.m.
Nelson said while school safety has been a concern due to assaults and previous incidents in the bathrooms, someone setting a fire is an anomaly in the school, and work done on fire safety awareness has been important to preventing problems.
Investigators will make sure that, if a culprit is identified, either criminal charges are brought or mental health services are provided.
“We will pursue this aggressively,” Nelson said. “Someone with a propensity to start fires always starts somewhere, and we want to make sure not to graduate to more serious incidents. It has the potential to get worse.”
Nelson praised the cooperation among his department and the police and school officials, noting that partnership is a key to successful outcomes.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
