46 Schools to Be Inspected After Ceiling Collapses

Forty-six schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District will be inspected after a ceiling collapsed last week at an elementary school’s outdoor cafeteria, authorities said Wednesday.

A school district structural engineer inspected the outdoor lunch shelter at Pinewood Avenue Elementary School on Saturday and found it structurally sound, said Julie Crum, director of maintenance and operations for the district.

Several earthquakes over the years could have contributed to the collapse, Crum said.

“There was no evidence of dry rot and leaks and things one would normally associate with a collapse,” she said.

Eleven students attending a summer program were evacuated five minutes before the collapse after school officials heard a rumble that shook the structure. The outdoor cafeteria has a capacity of about 600 students.

The school auditorium, built in the late 1960s with materials similar to those in the cafeteria, also remained closed. Suspension wires will be installed in a portion of the ceiling for extra support, Crum said.

Over the weekend, about 300 schools with similar suspended stucco ceilings were inspected and 46 were marked for further scrutiny, Crum said.

If the ceilings need to be torn out, they will be replaced with lightweight fireproofing and soundproofing, she said.