Arson shuts school for a week

Eighty firefighters and every available appliance from Papakura to the Auckland CBD fought the blaze. Photo / Dean Purcell

A South Auckland school attacked by an arsonist yesterday is expected to be closed for up to a week while charred classrooms are demolished.

Fires were lit in two separate places at Mangere East School in Yates Rd.

The Fire Service got the first 111 call about the blaze at 4.22pm.

"It was followed by multiple calls," said spokesman Steve Smith. "The guys didn't even get there before they transmitted a second alarm because they could see the smoke and flames."

It soon escalated to a fourth alarm.

Every available appliance from Papakura in the south up to the central business district of Auckland was called out. About 80 firefighters and 16 fire trucks were involved.

A police spokesman said officers, including crime squad members, were helping the investigation last night.

It was the second fire at a school in two days. On Sunday, five classrooms at Kerikeri High School in the Bay of Islands were damaged.

The treasurer of Mangere East's board of trustees, Peter Sykes, said the school, which has a roll of 630, would have to be closed until at least Thursday and possibly for more than a week while the burned-out classrooms were demolished, the fire's cause was investigated and alternative arrangements were made for pupils.

"There's a block of three, perhaps four classrooms, that have been destroyed, plus another classroom in another block. Five classrooms - that's about 150 kids," Mr Sykes said.

The school did not have spare teaching areas to accommodate that many pupils and it would not be safe to allow it to open until the damaged buildings were demolished.

The fire had damaged more than just buildings, Mr Sykes said.

"All the school's maths equipment, resource rooms, specialist teaching rooms - all those things are gone."

One of the damaged rooms was a prefabricated building. The rest were part of permanent buildings that had just been renovated and which Mr Sykes thought dated from the 1950s.

Mr Sykes said signs would be put up to explain the closure, notices would be broadcast on radio and parents were encouraged to phone the school for details this morning.

- additional reporting by NZPA