Fire at Abandoned Maine School Under Investigation

Chief Robert Thompson says it's too early to tell if the fire was suspicious

Fire crew extinguished a small blaze at an abandoned elementary school in Portland that is now under investigation.

The Portland Press Herald reports most of the damage from Thursday afternoon's fire was limited to one room at the city-owned structure that was once Thomas B. Reed Elementary School.

Chief Robert Thompson says it's too early to tell if the fire was suspicious, but the incident will be investigated because the school sat vacant for so long.

City officials in September approved plans to renovate the school for use as a preschool for children with special needs.

The building was built in the 1920s and was most recently used as a centralized kitchen for the school department. Thompson says the school still had power.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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