An aggressive fire took over JoAnn Leleck Elementary School Tuesday night in Silver Spring, Maryland, lasting 14 hours.
Montgomery County firefighters said that the closed school was in the process of being demolished before the fire broke out at 9 p.m. Tuesday.
Since the building was closed, the sprinkler system was deactivated, making it harder to contain the fire. When firefighters arrived, it was too dangerous for them to go inside or go on the roof to try to extinguish it.
Crews sprayed over 1 million gallons of water onto the building after still trying to put out the fire as it continued on into Wednesday morning.
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Smoke filled the air into the early morning, making it hard for some residents to breathe.
A mother and her son who both have asthma wore surgical masks outside to protect themselves from the fumes.
“The sad thing is, that was my old school. I used to go there," the son said. "It was just sad but at the same time, crazy because the fire started out of nowhere.”
By 11 a.m., the fire was contained but there were still hot spots on the property.
Now, a neighborhood is coming to terms with the former neighborhood school not being there anymore.
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“It’s been there since I’ve been here," one resident said. "It's just sad to see. Luckily, the kids aren’t going to school there now.”
Crews hope to hasten the demolition of the school by tearing down parts of the building so it will be easier to fully put out the fire.
