Fire closes Shubert School, devastates outbuilding

A fire early this morning in a wood-frame, portable structure at the Shubert Elementary School in Baldwin caused a closure of the school proper and left the outbuilding a gutted wreck.

A routine custodial inspection of the building at 6 a.m. revealed no problems, but less than an hour later—at 6:58 a.m.—a fire alarm went off and police were dispatched to the scene. The fire devastated the small building, which sits beside the main school structure and houses lunch, music and after school programs. The cause of the fire remains under investigation at this time, but F.D. and school officials have both stated they do not consider the blaze suspicious.

Although the main school building was not damaged in the fire, smoke did infiltrate the structure and classes for the day were canceled. The school district informed the families of the approximately 150 students who attend Shubert of the closure via a “Blackboard Connect” message.

Fire department and insurance company personnel were on hand inspecting the scene of the blaze and attempting preliminary salvage operations this morning, and the Shubert after school program has been relocated to the Brookside School for the foreseeable future. A meeting has been set at the school district at 2 p.m. to decide when the school might be reopened.