Classes at St. Francis of Assisi School in Springfield, Delaware County, are canceled for the rest of the week after a fire destroyed the building Monday evening.
While the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigates what caused the fire, school officials are focused on determining next steps for the 150 students affected.
The building that caught fire housed kindergarten, first and third grade students.
Principal Nicole Hamilton said two nearby Catholic schools, St. Kevin School and Cardinal O’Hara, both offered temporary classrooms for the students.
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia said other options are also being explored and the hope is that students can return to class next week.
A company that offers modular classrooms also offered its services.
Parents, administrators and even students said they were heartbroken that the school had been destroyed.
“It was very sad,” said Ben Travea, a third-grader at St. Francis of Assisi. “The community was in tears and all that stuff. And we just got here and there was like fire, like first grade.”
“Delaware County is a very close, close-knit family,” said Terry McCullough, a grandmother of one of the students, “especially within the Catholic schools. So I imagine it would be pretty soon that they would understand some things. to go.”
Officials said no one was injured in the fire.
The director asks for prayers.
Madeleine Wright
