Press-Republican

Local News

Related Photos

  • Firefighters from Champlain, Rouses Point, Mooers and Chazy quickly doused a boiler fire that started Tuesday in the basement of St. Mary’s Academy in Champlain. There will be no class today for pre-Kindergarten and some classes for Kindergarten through grade 6 will be moved from the older part of the building to the newer section of the building. (P-R Photo/Mike Betts )

    MARY

Discussion

PLEASE NOTE: There is a 150 word maximum for comments. All comments greater than 150 words in length will be deleted in their entirety.

ALSO NOTE: Derisive name-calling of an individual or group will result in the entire comment being deleted. This includes the terms "stupid" and "idiot" and similar references.

Welcome to our new online comments feature. Before you can join the discussion, you must first register with Disqus and verify your email address.

Once you do, your comments will post after they have been reviewed by a moderator.

We welcome your thoughts and your opinions, including unpopular ones. We ask only that you keep the conversation civil and clean.

Not all comments are deemed printable. Some are disqualified, at the newspaper’s discretion, for a number of reasons. Here are some typical practices to avoid in trying to get your comment printed:

There is a 150 word maximum for comments. All comments greater than 150 words in length will be deleted in their entirety.

Don’t state as a fact something that is unsubstantiated or that our editors wouldn't know to be true.

Don’t presume someone’s guilt in a case when it hasn't been established by a court.

Don’t assail or impugn an identifiable individual or group. If you have that kind of criticism, sign your name and submit it as a Letter to the Editor. (There is some leeway on this in connection with public officials, but it is not unconditional.)

Don’t use profanity. This includes the term “tea bagger.”

Don’t be incendiary or tasteless. Those qualities are subjective, of course, and our editors will be the arbiters.

Do not identify yourself in the main content area of the article content form. Only by enforcing this rule can the moderators prevent unscrupulous commenters from falsely identifying themselves as someone they are not.

Don't type in all caps. It is considered the Internet equivalent of shouting.

In sports articles, do not criticize officiating.

Remember, moderators are not allowed to edit any article comments. If an article comment fails any of the above criteria, the entire comment will be deleted.

We monitor comments Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Approval of comments outside these times may be delayed.
comments powered by Disqus
November 17, 2009

Firefighters tackle fire at St. Mary's School

By CASEY RYAN VOCK

CHAMPLAIN — Northern Tier firefighters quickly doused a boiler fire in the basement of St. Mary’s Academy Tuesday afternoon.

The fire began at about 3:45 p.m., when most students and faculty had already gone home for the day.

“We were lucky that it was a time of day, when most of the students had already been released, so we were very fortunate from that aspect,” said Champlain Fire Chief Chris Trombley.

Some students were still participating in after-school programs when the fire began, so firefighters simultaneously evacuated the school, sending people to St. Mary’s Church, and worked to contain the fire to the boiler.

“The main goal was to make sure the school was evacuated and isolate the fire,” Trombley said. “Once we knew we had isolated the fire to that room, we wanted to remove the smoke and prevent smoke damage.”

When the first firefighters arrived at the school, they encountered a substantial amount of smoke and high temperatures in the basement of the school, according to Trombley.

“There was a malfunction in one of the two main boilers that heat the school. This particular boiler heats the older section of St. Mary’s that was built in the early 1900s.”

Firefighters used minimal water in quickly putting out the fire, but large-diameter lines were run to the school from village hydrants in the event that more water was needed.

A fire in the early 1980s broke out in the same room of St. Mary’s Academy, and Trombley kept that in mind Tuesday.

“That (fire in the 1980s) was quite an event. So we prepared for the worst. We were lucky that we contained it to that room.”

Mutual aid was provided fire departments from Champlain, Rouses Point, Mooers and Chazy. Firefighters from Champlain were at the school until about 6 p.m.

The exact cause of Tuesday’s fire is still being investigated, but Trombley said the boiler had somehow malfunctioned.

The extent of the damage to the boiler was unknown Tuesday night, as it was impossible to perform any work on it.

“We can’t get next to it right now because it’s so hot,” Trombley said. “The school is going to move a couple classes while we look at replacing or repairing the boiler.”

Sister Marie Cordata Kelly, the principal at St. Mary’s, said school will be in session today for kindergarten through grade 6 but not for pre-K students.

“The problem is we don’t have heat in that (older) side of the building, so we are just moving our classes over to the side with heat,” she said.

As of Tuesday night, pre-K classes are canceled for Wednesday only.

As school officials learn more about the future of the boiler, they will decide when pre-K will resume and whether classes will continue to be held in the newer section of the building

Cordata Kelly was pleased that she could find no signs of smoke damage in the building.

“We want to thank the fire departments and the many people who have called offering assistance.”

Text Only | Photo Reprints
New Today
Local News

Recent Article Comments
Albany Round-up

Photo of the Day
Strange News
Videos: Editor Picks
Denver's Largest-Ever Drug Bust Nets Dozens Marines: No Punishment for Nazi-like Flag Vets Look to Translate Military Skills Into Jobs Expert: Removing LA School's Staff 'Appropriate' Raw Video: School Bus Burst Into Flames LA School Reopens Amid Sex Abuse Scandal $25B Settlement Reached Over Foreclosure Abuses Pentagon: Allow Women Closer to Front Lines Obama Gives Education Waivers to 10 States Giffords Aide to Run for Her Seat LA School in Sex Abuse Scandal Reopens Winter Slamming North Asia, Parts of Europe Syrian Forces Renew Bombardment of Homs States, Banks Reach Foreclosure-abuse Settlement Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life Greeks March; Angry Despite Debt Deal Raw Video: U.S. Pullout Celebration Raw Video: Annual Empire State Building Run-Up Man Killed in Courthouse Shootout Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service