Update On Carihi Secondary Fire Recovery

School District 72 has issued an update on the next steps in the recovery process following the fire at Carihi Secondary.

The school district is waiting on permit approval from the City of Campbell River. Once received, demolition of A-wing, including the teaching kitchen, band room, storage rooms, and hallway, will begin.

This work could start as early as over spring break and might be completed before students return on April 1.

The district says a positive development is that the maintenance team, in collaboration with a structural engineer, has developed a plan that allows the gym, mezzanine, drama room, and lower classrooms to be repaired rather than demolished and rebuilt.

This means these spaces will remain much the same as they were before the fire.

And another big step forward is that B-wing classrooms and the multi-purpose room will be reopening after spring break.

Carihi students will no longer need to travel to Oyster River as a satellite location.

The majority of students will now be back at Carihi full-time.

Fire broke out at the school in late November.

An investigation found the cause to be spontaneous combustion from a reaction between cooking oils on fabrics, heat after laundering, and inadequate ventilation.

For more information, visit School District 72.