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Posted: 3:00 AM CST Monday, Dec. 20, 2021
Parents and students of St. James Collegiate and George Waters Middle School will be advised later Monday about whether damage from Sunday’s fire in the high-school section will require classes to be cancelled again Tuesday. Winter break is set to begin on Wednesday. (Mike Sudoma / Winnipeg Free Press)
Classes at St. James Collegiate and George Waters Middle School have been cancelled for Monday due to fire-related damage in the building on Portage Avenue that houses junior high and high school students during the week.
Classes at St. James Collegiate and George Waters Middle School have been cancelled for Monday due to fire-related damage in the building on Portage Avenue that houses junior high and high school students during the week.
The Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service responded to a monitored fire alarm in the two-storey school at 1900 Portage Ave. at 10:30 a.m. Sunday.
Upon arrival, crews encountered smoke coming from the high school section of the building, launched an offensive attack and searched the facility to conclude there were no occupants.
The fire was declared under control just before noon and no injuries were reported, according to a city release.
A worker pulls glass out of a broken window on the first floor of St James Collegiate Sunday afternoon after a fire broke out Sunday morning. (Mike Sudoma / Winnipeg Free Press)
The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.
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A spokesperson for the St. James-Assiniboia School Division indicated administrators cancelled classes for Dec. 20 because of smoke damage in the facility.
Both the cost and extent of the damage, which includes a first-floor window that was smashed by authorities so they could access the building, remains unclear, per the spokesperson.
"At this time, we are informing families that there will be no school for students at George Waters Middle School and St. James Collegiate on Monday," they said via email.
Administration indicated it will update families with more information on Monday.
The winter break is scheduled to start on Wednesday.
— staff
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