The James Logan Courier

Courier Staff Report

Plastic kitchenware which fell on a dishwasher's heating element washed away about 20 minutes of classes as James Logan High School students started their second semester.

According to Principal Mistee Hightower, "a piece of plastic fell onto the hot coils during the drying cycle" of a dishwasher in the 300 building. "It melted and set off the fire alarms," she said.

The high school had been in session for about three minutes of the new semester when the alarm sounded to send students to their evacuation areas.

The alarm occurred during a special five-minute period at the start of the school day at about 8:43 a.m., in which students went to the classrooms they attended during the first semester to pick up their second semester schedules. School starts for most students at 8:40 a.m.

After personnel from the Union City Fire Department responded to the alarm, school administrators sounded the all-clear signal, and students began filing back to their classrooms. Before most arrived, however, a second alarm sounded, sending the students back to their evacuation areas for a few minutes until a second all-clear signal was given.

Some students seemed confused as to where they should go: their first semester classroom or their new classes.

Annoucements were made to provide direction, but many students couldn't hear the words of the announcement because of the noise of the crowds of students returning from evacuations stations.