Hundreds of firefighters fight blaze at Richmond school

By: Amanda Pitts

Email: alpitts@abc6.com

Twitter: @AmandaPittsTV

RICHMOND, R.I. (WLNE) – Hundreds of firefighters from 35 departments spent over 12 hours fighting a blaze at a Richmond school on Sunday.

The Richmond-Carolina Fire Department responded to Meadowbrook Waldorf School just after 8:30 a.m. after a neighbor reported seeing smoke while walking past.

Twenty-two tankers were on scene helping to knock down the fire. A portion of Route 138 was closed for the day as the tankers made trips down the street to a nearby school to fill up their water tanks.

Scott Barber, Richmond-Carolina Fire Chief, said the fire has been hard to fight ever since the roof collapsed earlier in the day.

“We’re not able to keep firefighters on the interior, so we had to pull everybody out of the building. That’s why it’s taking so long. Everything’s being done from the exterior of the building.”

Just after 6 p.m., the remains of the Pre-K through 8th grade school were beginning to get torn down.

Fire Marshals are on scene to determine the cause of the fire.

This story will be updated as we receive updates.

© WLNE-TV / ABC6