Bellwood-Antis has been forced to scramble extra-curricular events following a fire on Tuesday that closed the middle and high school buildings.
At 4 a.m. on Tuesday, December 17 a state police fire marshal arrived at Bellwood-Antis Middle School in response to a report of an internal fire. The fire was set in the wrestling room in the middle school boys locker room. The coaches office also received damage. The wrestling room was completely destroyed and smoke and water damage made the school inhabitable.
In response, the Bellwood-Antis School District was off on Tuesday. The remainder of the week has been flexible instruction days (FIDS) for students in the high school and middle school. Students that had items in the school were unable to retrieve on them on Tuesday; however, they may now retrieve any educational belongings from their lockers.
High school principal Mr. Richard Schreier said there are multiple challenges in the face of this adversity.
“First, we had to plan access to education and resources for our students and teachers,” he said. “Next, we recognized the need to provide as much normalcy as possible for student-athletes involved in a winter sport. So, we planned to have practice areas and scheduled games available as soon as it was deemed safe for those involved. Finally, we are looking to reschedule some of the other fun events that typically occur during this last week of school prior to Christmas break.”
Some of those events include the annual activity fair, which is typically held the last day of school before the Christmas break.
The boys basketball game scheduled at home on Tuesday against Williamsburg was postponed, and Friday’s wrestling match against United was moved from the middle school gym to the high school.
While the middle and high school will be going virtual for the remainder of the week, elementary operations will remain in person for the rest of the week.
Christmas break beginning the week after the fire it allows the school district an additional two weeks to make the school habitable and safe for students to return for in person learning.
Events that were to take place at the school are being postponed. The band concert that was a supposed to happen on Wednesday, December 18, has been postponed until Tuesday, January 7.
High School band teacher Mr. Patrick Sachse had this to say about the concert being moved: “We have picked Tuesday, January 7 as our concert make-up date. We will also have our traditional elementary school assembly that morning. Rescheduling the concert honestly wasn’t a challenge on my end. The students will sound just as good in January, and this gives them a chance to show off their accomplishments when life is a little calmer. I appreciate everyone’s support and flexibility!”
