Scranton Diocese officials have released information for students and families about the next steps following Tuesday's fire at Wyoming Area Catholic School in Exeter.
Wednesday, Sept. 2:
● The school community will gather for 11 a.m. Mass at Saint Maria Goretti Parish in Laflin. "Coming together in prayer will be an important first step as we begin to process what happened and look ahead," a letter to families said.
● Wednesday "will also provide us with an opportunity to reunite students with backpacks, school materials and other personal belongings that may have been left behind when we evacuated," the letter said. Pick-up for the backpacks will begin following the Mass until 1 p.m.
● "Because the school building remains closed, no one will be permitted to return to the school to retrieve items on their own," the letter said.
● Counselors will be available Wednesday at Saint Maria Goretti "to support students who may be having difficulty processing the events." They will be at the church at 10:30 a.m. to meet with any student until Mass and then again after Mass.
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday:
● Officials anticipate that there will be no regular school ahead of Labor Day Weekend.
Tuesday, Sept. 8:
● Officials expect this will be the next anticipated day of instruction, but that could be at the church, not the school.
"Our expectation is that we will be able to begin classes at Saint Maria Goretti Parish in Laflin at that time, if necessary," the letter said.
"Saint Maria Goretti Parish has generously offered the use of its religious education facilities, which include multiple classrooms and other spaces that can accommodate our school community," the letter added. "We are incredibly grateful to the parish for welcoming us and offering to help for as long as necessary while our school building is being restored."
What happened?
The school, located on Wyoming Avenue in Exeter, serves students from pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade, with 174 students enrolled there this year.
Those students, teachers and staff were forced to leave the building in a hurry shortly after 10 a.m. Tuesday when smoke was spotted.
According to the letter, a teacher noticed that lights were flickering in the lower end of the hallway.
"Administrators immediately went to investigate and noticed smoke in the area. Without hesitation, the decision was made to evacuate the building, and our students and staff exited safely and quickly," the letter said.
"Everybody was out within just a couple of minutes," diocesan spokesman Eric Deabill told WVIA News. "There were no injuries. Everybody safely left the building."
Wyoming Area opened doors for evacuees
Students and staff were transported to the Wyoming Area Secondary School, according to Wyoming Area Regional Police.
"The Wyoming Area School District was fantastic to work with. They opened their doors immediately to us," Deabill said.
"They helped us put up a tent outside. Students were kept safe inside, and families came, and we were able to verify they were the parent they were supposed to leave with," he added. "It went very, very smoothly."
How badly was the school damaged?
The Pennsylvania State Police fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.
Deabill said the smoke and fire were contained to two classroom areas on the side of the building used for younger students.
"We know there is significant damage to at least two classrooms, as well as smoke and water damage in other areas of the building," the diocesan letter said.
"We have already started to work with professionals to assess the damage, begin the necessary cleanup and restoration, and determine what must be done before students can safely return," the letter added.
"We want our students to go back to learning together as quickly as possible," the letter said. "But we will not rush that process at the expense of health and safety. Our students will return to Wyoming Area Catholic School only when we are confident that the building is safe."
