BROWNSBURG, Ind. — Students will be welcomed back to Cardinal Elementary School in Brownsburg on Tuesday, May 9 after a suspected lightning strike sparked a fire over the weekend.
The school was cleared to reopen after officials said they contracted an outside air quality company to conduct an assessment.
Students in first grade and high ability will be met as they enter school and will be directed to their new temporary classrooms by teachers, staff and volunteers.
Custodial and maintenance staff worked to restore areas of the building with water damage.
Cardinal teachers and staff moved learning materials to new temporary spaces while barriers were created to allow the restoration to continue in the affected classrooms.
"We sincerely appreciate everyone’s hard work on Sunday and Monday so that Cardinal students can be back in school on Tuesday morning," school leaders said in a statement.
The fire in the attic area of the school was reported shortly after 7 a.m. Sunday, and firefighters worked for almost two hours locating and extinguishing hot spots in the building's attic.
The cause is under investigation, but a lightning strike is suspected as the likely spark.
Nobody was injured.
A teacher who came to check on baby chicks that had recently hatched in a classroom noticed smoke and reported the fire. Otherwise, according a Brownsburg Fire Territory spokesperson, it could have spread to the rest of the building.
The chicks were not hurt. Brownsburg Fire Territory posted an update on their Facebook page.