School Fire Caused by Electrical Short

A fire that destroyed one kindergarten classroom and damaged another at Orangethorpe Elementary School last month was caused by an electrical short, fire officials have concluded.

Such fires usually are caused by aging electrical circuits, Larry B. Greene, the Fire Department’s operations chief, said this week. “It wasn’t malicious,” he said.

Fullerton school board members have authorized reconstruction of the classrooms as soon as possible so that the work can be completed by early next year. The district now is soliciting bids from contractors, said Jim Lucey, director of maintenance and operations.

He said one classroom was destroyed and the other was damaged by smoke and water. The district is buying portable classrooms to house students until the rebuilt structures are ready.

Orangethorpe Principal Patrick J. Backus said the burned classrooms were in a 42-year-old building that had survived two other fires in the past decade. The first was caused by arson and the second by an electrical malfunction, he said.