3-alarm fire burns Bellingham middle school

BELLINGHAM, Wash.- A three-alarm fire raged through Whatcom Middle School in Bellingham early Thursday, causing extensive damage to the building.

The fire was reported by a neighbor at 1 a.m. Thursday, and Fire Chief Bill Boyd told The Bellingham Herald it had burned through most of the roof within 15 minutes and heavily damaged the building's third floor.

Boyd says firefighters did a quick search of the historic, three-story school and found no one inside before they were forced to withdraw. Flames were still visible at 5 a.m.

"It's really tragic," said seventh-grader Roy Evans. "A new school becomes old, but an old school stays old and has tons of memories."

There's no word on the cause of the fire. School District spokeswoman Tonya Rowe said the building was undergoing remodeling and a seismic retrofit to help it withstand an earthquake. Workmen were seen on the roof as late as 10:30 p.m. Wednesday doing welding.

The fire also knocked out power to the surrounding area, including the Bellingham Police Department.

Classes for the 580 students in grades 6-8 are temporarily canceled. Students will return to class on Thursday, Nov. 12, but a location has not yet been chosen.

"I don't know where I'm going to go," Roy said. "I don't know if I'm going to be with my friends."

Officials have not yet given a damage estimate to the century-old building, which was originally constructed in 1903.

These scenes from the school fire were provided by the Bellingham Herald: