Classes to resume at Enderby high school after fire

ENDERBY – Things are almost back to normal after a fire forced the evacuation of a North Okanagan high school and left students unable to return to class today.

The fire broke out on Friday at A.L. Fortune Secondary in Enderby. Everyone got out safely, but school was cancelled for the rest of the day, plus all day today, April 11.

According to a media release from School District 83, classes will resume tomorrow.

A school bathroom was damaged in the suspicious fire, and a classroom wall sustained water damage from the sprinklers. There is no estimated dollar value on the damages yet.

The school district has not commented on the cause of the fire and our calls to the Enderby Fire Department and RCMP have not been returned.

A restoration company called in to assess the damage over the weekend discovered asbestos in the drywall and assistance from an environmental services company was requested.

The asbestos was removed to WorkSafe B.C. standards and air quality has been monitored.

Director of instruction Carl Cooper says some adjustments will be made when classes resume due to one wing needing to be closed for a few days and a couple of classrooms being closed during construction of a new wall.

"We are pleased to have our students and staff returning to the important learning that takes place at A.L. Fortune every day," Cooper says in the release.

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