Two high school fires still being investigated

BY SETH MANDEL
Staff Writer

MONROE — Police are continuing to investigate two fires set simultaneously at the township high school last week, but have not made any arrests.

No one was injured in either of the fires, which took place at opposite ends of the school Jan. 25 at 11:19 a.m.

Police said this week they did not have any suspects, but more than one person is believed to have been involved. Monroe Police Detective Lawrence Linke said the fires were too far apart to have been set by one person, and police are investigating a possible connection between the fires.

One fire was set in a girls bathroom at the northern end of the school, and was extinguished by a security officer using water, Linke said.

The other occurred on the second floor in the southern portion of the building near a stairwell. A jacket was set on fire, and extinguished by a district employee using a fire extinguisher.

Neither the security officer nor the employee were injured putting out the flames.

Linke said the garbage can and the staircase railing were both blackened as a result of the flames. No other school property sustained damage, though the location of the fire near the stairwell required cleanup after it was extinguished.

“It was on the stairwell, so the extinguisher got all over not only a portion of the second floor, but all the way down the steps to the first floor,” Linke said.

Because the fires were set during class time, Linke said, there was little immediate danger to the other students and the building itself.

“There was minimal danger of the fire spreading throughout the school,” he said.

The fire alarm was triggered, and the school was evacuated for about 30 minutes, Linke said. All three fire districts, the police department and Monroe Township First Aid Squad responded to the incident.

The Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office was also notified immediately, he said.

Linke said those responsible would face arson and reckless endangerment charges.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Linke at (732) 521-0222, ext. 178.