No injuries to staff, students and emergency responders were reported from a small fire that occurred on the third floor of Hastings High School (HHS) on Monday, December 9. The general fire alarm was triggered, and Hastings Fire Department (HFD) was dispatched at 11:36 a.m. Hastings Bus Company sent buses to the school to provide shelter for students that do not drive. Those students that drive were released to go home.
Here is the press release from Assistant Fire Chief Chris Paulson.
HFD was dispatched for a general fire alarm at HHS today at 11:36. Fire units were enroute at 11:37, responding were two Engines, two Medic units, and three additional fire officers. While enroute, we received a water flow alarm (sprinkler system activation) from the alarm monitoring company. HFD arrived at 11:43, initial reports from staff were of a fire that had occurred in a third-floor classroom. Staff reported that the sprinkler system had extinguished the fire. Firefighters investigated and confirmed the fire to be out. HFD worked with ISD 200 Maintenance staff to turn off the sprinkler system and stop water flow. Fire personnel also ventilated smoke from the affected areas of the third floor, and placed salvage covers in areas of the second floor where water had come through the floor. Fire units cleared the High School at 1:08pm. No injuries to staff or students were reported to HFD. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Because of the fire, students were dismissed early to allow HHS staff and HFD to clean up the water and reset and inspect the fire suppression system without further disruption to the learning environment.
HHS Principal Scott Doran sent an email to parents and the Journal just after 4:30 p.m. Monday afternoon. It reads:
I would like to provide you with an update regarding today's incident at Hastings High School.
At approximately 11:30 this morning, a staff member noticed an item that had been left on a stove burner in a classroom. The item had ignited, and smoke was present. At the same time, alarms were activated, and the fire suppression/sprinkler system was initiated. The threat was neutralized almost immediately. Students were evacuated and the fire department responded. With assistance from the district office, the bus company was notified and was able to send a number of buses to the high school in order to provide the students with a warm place to stay during the remainder of the evacuation. Shortly after that, in consultation with the fire department and district office, it was determined that due to the amount of water and the impact to the rest of the warning system throughout the building, we needed to release students for the remainder of the day.
There are crews here at this time helping to remediate a number of affected rooms. We have also received confirmation regarding the reset of our fire system. We will be operating on our normal schedule tomorrow.
As always, we prioritize student safety. I am proud of our students' ability to respond and for the actions of our staff today. We will continue to debrief and to look for areas of improvement. For example, as we move into winter, a similar situation at lower outside temperatures would have elicited a different response such as an evacuation and immediate transportation to another district building. Please know that all factors are taken into consideration and your child's well-being is at the forefront of every decision. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you or your family today.
Terry Johnson with the Hastings Bus Company (HBC) along with two of HBC’s mechanics were on scene at the high school within 15 minutes with two buses. Johnson was on site to assist Principal Doran and manage the buses as they arrived.

“We ended up having seven full size buses at the High School,” said Johnson. “We had buses sent down from our Big River Terminal. Three special ed buses were sent as well with the first bus taking home two wheelchair bound students. The office staff stayed back to call in more drivers who live close to the bus company. Staff also coordinated with the parents of the wheelchair students to make sure they would be met when the bus got to their house.”

This is an example of everything going according to plan. HFD arrived in seven minutes of receiving the alarm, the buildings fire suppression system did its job in minimizing any additional damage, students and staff safely executed the fire safety and evacuation plan, the bus company quickly assisted to keep students safe and warm, and no one was injured. School resumed normally on Tuesday.