A few minutes before the bell marking the end of the day rang Feb. 7, the fire alarm went off. Shortly after, an announcement was made through the intercom that teachers needed to help evacuate students from the school.

During a fire, students would normally evacuate the building and head to the football field for teachers to take attendance. However, the football field is overflowing with snow. In this case, Plan B is to head towards the church located at the corner of 100th street and 62nd. However, many staff and students were confused by the alarm. Although some staff members told students to head toward the church, these statements were not enforced.

P.E. teacher Deb Nicholson said firefighters found smoke coming from a room in the lower level of the school. The smoke originated from a T-shirt maker machine that malfunctioned. The machine is used by Entrepreneurship, a business class offered to juniors and seniors.