TORONTO, Ont. – Forty-five classrooms are set to reopen at Danforth Collegiate and Technical Institute, Monday.
Crews worked last week to get the classrooms ready for students and teachers after a three-alarm fire caused significant damage to part of the building.
The Toronto District School Board said only the north and west entrances to the school will be open. Also, breakfast or lunch programs won’t be offered this week.
Those in the developmental disabilities program and their teachers will continue to attend class at Eastdale Collegiate for the rest of the school year and shuttle busses will be provided.
Some students will need to attend classes in both locations. Those students will be transported between the schools by shuttle buses.
On May 2, Toronto District School Board officials said they planned to resume some classes on Monday. The school’s principal and superintendent issued a letter to parents and guardians.
A three-alarm fire on April 25 in the school’s drama room was deemed arson and classes have been held off-site as fire officials investigate.
On Friday, students were able to pick up new timetables and any belongings left behind in lockers when the fire broke out. Details of the pickups will be sent home Wednesday in a letter.
The fire broke out at the school — located at 800 Greenwood Ave., near Strathmore Boulevard and Donlands Avenue — in a storage closet in the rear of the drama room on the second floor at around 10:15 a.m. just as second-period classes were getting underway.
A teacher noticed smoke coming from the room next to her classroom.
“I smelled it and saw black smoke,” she told 680News.
The fire was a difficult one to fight because the room did not have windows. Firefighters said the room was as hot as a furnace and flames were rolling along the ceiling, spreading quickly.
According to Toronto EMS, there were no injuries among students or staff. The fire captain, one of the first to enter the school, suffered heat exhaustion and was treated on the scene by paramedics.
Twelve-hundred hundred students got out of the building safely and were given the rest of the day off.
45 classrooms set to reopen at Danforth Tech, Monday
Kevin Misener and 680News staff
Gas Prices
680News Android App
Weather Guarantee
Advertiser Directory

Comments
Editor's note: Comments which include offensive or inappropriate language will be deleted. Healthy debate is encouraged but we will not permit any personal attacks. View our comment policy here.