Nobody can seem to believe that the main building at a school
for mentally disabled children would go up in flames twice within
six months.
video of the fire.
Nobody can seem to believe that the main building at a school for mentally disabled children would go up in flames twice within six months.
A crew of 32 firefighters and seven engines from four county departments responded to the three-alarm fire at the Gateway School in South Gilroy Wednesday night, said Battalion Chief Phil King. Another engine from Stockton that was in the area also helped extinguish the blaze that began just before 7:30 p.m. The inferno drew hundreds of wide-eyed residents and passersby and destroyed about 90 percent of the building, according to King and neighbors who witnessed the incident.
“I ran outside and just thought, ‘Oh my God. Again?'” said Sandy Janisch, who lives across from the building at 7151 Hanna St., and whose 16-year-old autistic son, Logan, attended the school when he was 4.
“It was roaring – just an incredible fire, and it burned so fast,” Janisch said.
The Santa Clara County Office of Education had already been talking to insurance representatives about rebuilding the blackened structure that an arson fire nearly destroyed in January. Authorities have not made any arrests in connection with that fire, which caused about $4 million in damages and displaced 38 of the school’s 50 students at the time, according to office spokesman Larry Slonaker. The preliminary estimate for Wednesday evening’s fire is about $250,000, and the 20 students attending summer school will relocate to Brownell Middle School until the fall, when the full student body will return and continue using the portable classrooms set up after the first fire, Slonaker added.
That first blaze left the building a charred eyesore that has been soaking up the summer heat, and because there is no electricity flowing through the abandoned structure and Wednesday’s fire began inside, signs point to arson, King said. School staff reported that somebody broke into the back room of the main school building and vandalized it earlier this week, and King said he found it suspicious that flames were also reported in the initial call for service. The investigation remains open, however, and fire personnel poked around the odorous scene Thursday afternoon looking for clues.
“Having this happen a second time changes things a bit,” King said. “It’s very unfortunate, but it would have been more so if any reconstruction had taken place.”
Once the flames started shooting through the roof, firefighters knew they were dealing with a difficult structure fire, he said. With the roof caving in, they worked around the perimeter of the building, training their hoses on the flames, which burned about 90 percent of the building.
“They really didn’t have a chance,” said Bruce Cleveland, who lives across the street, about 100 yards away from the school. “We saw some little flames early on, but within two minutes the whole thing just went up in flames.”
Seeing how badly the main building was damaged, firefighters worked to run hose lines between the fire and nearby buildings, including the administration building.
“(The main building) was engulfed,” said Brandon Cleveland, Bruce Cleveland’s 16-year-old son. “We could feel the heat.”
The father and son said they both harbored suspicions about the cause of the blaze. Things calmed down about 8:30 p.m. as charred remains of the outer walls fell to the ground in clumps and only a skeleton of the building remained.
The next day, the county’s assistant superintendent for student services just wanted to know why.
“Why are we the target? Why are they going after a building that was already torched,” Joe Fimiani said. “I’m just glad there were no kids in it.”
The school services students with learning disabilities, including disorders that make sudden change difficult for them, officials said. Mary Noll – the grandmother of Logan Janisch, the autistic student who attends Gilroy High School and lives across the street – said the same thing in her living room Thursday.
Even though the fire gutted the main Gateway School building, it did not affect Glen View or the portables.
“We found the portables where the classes are held were unharmed,” said one teacher’s aid, who declined to give her name.
The aid rushed to the school as soon as she heard about the fire.
“Last time all the materials in the classes were ruined,” she said. “Who the hell would do this?”
Anyone with information about the fire can call police and fire investigators at 846-0350, or leave an anonymous tip at 846-0330.
Reporter Sara Suddes, Online Editor Chris Quirk and Copy Editor Nathan Mixter contributed to this story.
