Canfield school evacuated for rooftop smoke

Staff report

CANFIELD

School district officials evacuated students from C.H. Campbell as a precaution due to smoke from a rooftop unit Wednesday afternoon.

Chief Don Hutchison of the Cardinal Joint Fire District said an air-conditioning unit motor burned up and that tripped the smoke alarm.

Authorities also were called to the school at 300 Moreland Drive by a cellphone call on smoke in the cafeteria.

Schools Superintendent Alex Geordan said the elementary-school officials alerted the fire district the same time the alarm went off.

Hutchison credited the system at the school, where a teacher has a green sign if every kid of that class has been accounted for or a red sign if any kids were missing, to allow the evacuation to proceed smoothly.

Due to all green signs, Hutchison said every child was accounted for in about two minutes.

Geordan said elementary students walked from that school to the high school while special-needs students were bused between the two buildings.

The fire district and Canfield police were called to the school for smoke from a rooftop unit at 11:38 a.m.

There was no fire, just smoke at the building, Geordan said, adding that classes would resume today.

Parents were allowed to pick up their children from the high-school gym. If they didn’t, children were bused home at the normal time, about 3:30 p.m., Geordan said.