North Cowichan/Duncan RCMP have deemed a fire that occurred on New Year’s Eve at Alexander Elementary School suspicious.
Police say they received a report of the fire at around 10 p.m. on Tuesday, December 31st and attended the scene to find a structure fire on the back end of the school.
Now, RCMP are seeking out witnesses, video surveillance and those with dash camera footage from the area around the time of the fire.
Police added that the affected building was unoccupied at the time of the fire.
Following the fire, a notice was sent out to parents detailing how the incident would impact students and the school’s operations.
Alexander Elementary Principal, Ann Kissinger said that the fire department responded quickly which prevented the blaze from spreading.
The fire only ended up impacting a back pod, or portable portion of the school.
“While the pod area suffered significant fire and water damage, the main building was not affected,” said Kissinger.
Although the back pod area that was impacted will be out of commission until the investigation is over and it can be sufficiently repaired, classes will continue for all students at the school, beginning on Monday, January 6th.
Kissinger says that some classes will have to be moved around, but school staff will make due with what they have.
Anyone with information about the fire is asked to contact North Cowichan/Duncan RCMP at (250) 748-5522.
