Eye of the Tiger
Fire Alarms-Rash of recent alarms become an issue at RHSMonday, December 13, 2010 By Nikki Lukasko
The recent fire alarms that have been set off at Roseville High School have been an issue for the students, staff and the Roseville Fire Department. The most recent alarm went off last Thursday during fourth period. School administration sent an email about 20 minutes after the alarm went off and explained that the alarm was caused by a smoke detector that picked up dust as particulate matter. Some students, including sophomore Andrew Greenblatt, had strong opinions about the three fire alarms. “It defeats the purpose of a fire drill because when we have so many, kids do not take them seriously,” said Greenblatt. The first time the alarm was set off this year was during third period on November 18. When the kiln door in an art room was opened, the temperature immediately went up. The heat detector set the alarm off. When the fire department has to come to a scene and there isn’t a fire, whoever called them is fined. But because RHS was able to inform them that there was not an actual fire before they left the fire department, the school was not fined. “Most of the time we can stop the fire department from coming before they leave,” said assistant principal Jon Coleman. An explanation email was sent out to the RHS staff at about 12:30 PM that day to inform teachers and their students of what occurred. The second time there was a fire evacuation was because the construction crew was installing a switch to the new culinary room’s fire system. The school was evacuated on November 29 during their fourth period, and another email was sent out soon after, at about 1:25 PM. The message explained what happened and that the 200 wing, which is where the culinary room is, will be taken offline when working on the alarm system during school hours. Again, the fire department was informed before they left, so the school was not fined. The third alarm went off on December second during first lunch because a fire was lit inside the men’s A-block restroom, located across from the dance room. The fire evacuation was much harder to perform because of the time. “Anytime we have a drill during lunch, it is more difficult because students may be confused as to where they go,” said assistant principal Nancy Veilleux. Because the students did not know where to go, it became complicated to account for them. When they fire department arrived momentarily after the fire was put out by maintenance, they stayed for about a half hour to investigate the scene. Because this actually was a fire, there was no cost for the fire department to come. One student is currently in custody for starting the fire and another student is waiting for their trial; both are juveniles. “Anytime it’s a felony, it stays on your record,” said Officer Carlos Cortés. The explanation email was scent to the staff at about noon that day informing students and teachers that the A-block restrooms were off-limits for the rest of the day because of the smoke. It also explained that the Roseville Fire Department surveyed the area and confirmed it was clear for the school to resume classes. Although there was only slight damage to the trash can, the event intruded on class time. “The biggest thing is that it is a disruption,” said Cortés. |