Thursday, November 17, 2005
Ring of Fire (Alarms)
Maybe I'm being vain here, but as Underwood High's resident mad scientist, I always figured that if anyone would be responsible for the building catching on fire, it would be me performing one last climactic demonstration on the reactivity of alkali metals. ("And now students we're going to put this fist sized chunk of potassium into this bucket of water...") The school itself is old, and despite the presence of large amounts of asbestos, has many delightfully flammable bits. Still, in my time there the only fire alarms that I've heard going off were the results of either: a. fire drills b. student pranksters pulling the lever and running.
So I was shocked to learn this afternoon around 5:30 when the fire alarm started ringing, it was not a case of either of the aforementioned scenarios, but rather one of the disciplinarians who smelled smoke coming out of one of the walls. I quickly gathered my things and went, along with the rest of the students and staff out of the building as a half dozen fire engines pulled up to the school. This seemed like overkill to me, but later on, when I found out the cause, it made some sense. Apparently, there was a minor electrical fire within the walls, and given the shoddy wiring throughout the school, things could have almost certainly gotten worse had professionals not intervened.
The thing that puzzled me was that the alarm were not audible on the fourth floor. A chemistry teacher colleague of mine was working in her room and only discovered the situation well after the rest of the staff had left. Normally, perhaps an announcement could have been made, but tonight there was no announcement to the rest of the building due to the principal's new habit of locking the main office.
Q: And why pray tell is the office locked after school?
A: Because people are stealing computer equipment (speakers, etc.) from the secretaries' desks after hours, of course!
The ending of the story? Despite my quiet little hope that this would have lasting repercussions, there almost certainly will be school tomorrow. Oh, and if you hear anything about the fire on the news or so forth, just be aware that I am fine, albeit a little more concerned about whether the labs have working fire extinguishers.
Maybe I'm being vain here, but as Underwood High's resident mad scientist, I always figured that if anyone would be responsible for the building catching on fire, it would be me performing one last climactic demonstration on the reactivity of alkali metals. ("And now students we're going to put this fist sized chunk of potassium into this bucket of water...") The school itself is old, and despite the presence of large amounts of asbestos, has many delightfully flammable bits. Still, in my time there the only fire alarms that I've heard going off were the results of either: a. fire drills b. student pranksters pulling the lever and running.
So I was shocked to learn this afternoon around 5:30 when the fire alarm started ringing, it was not a case of either of the aforementioned scenarios, but rather one of the disciplinarians who smelled smoke coming out of one of the walls. I quickly gathered my things and went, along with the rest of the students and staff out of the building as a half dozen fire engines pulled up to the school. This seemed like overkill to me, but later on, when I found out the cause, it made some sense. Apparently, there was a minor electrical fire within the walls, and given the shoddy wiring throughout the school, things could have almost certainly gotten worse had professionals not intervened.
The thing that puzzled me was that the alarm were not audible on the fourth floor. A chemistry teacher colleague of mine was working in her room and only discovered the situation well after the rest of the staff had left. Normally, perhaps an announcement could have been made, but tonight there was no announcement to the rest of the building due to the principal's new habit of locking the main office.
Q: And why pray tell is the office locked after school?
A: Because people are stealing computer equipment (speakers, etc.) from the secretaries' desks after hours, of course!
The ending of the story? Despite my quiet little hope that this would have lasting repercussions, there almost certainly will be school tomorrow. Oh, and if you hear anything about the fire on the news or so forth, just be aware that I am fine, albeit a little more concerned about whether the labs have working fire extinguishers.
