'Devastating' - Whakatāne primary school ravaged by fire in early morning blaze

February 6, 2021

Chief Fire Officer Ken Clark says there’s “absolutely nothing” left after this morning’s fire.

A Whakatāne school has been largely damaged by fire overnight, after a blaze ripped through several facilities under construction.

Smoke billowed into the sky surrounding Apanui School in the early hours of this morning with flames stretching as high as eight metres.

Principal Simon Akroyd said the blaze had been "devastating" for the school community, particularly for the roughly 200 students who started back to school on Thursday this week. 

“Apanui School has a strong sense of whanaungatanga and I know the school and wider community will come together as we rebuild stronger.

"We know this community is resilient and comes together through these situations. Our thanks go to those who have reached out and offered support and for your ongoing support that will be needed in the coming months".

He's expected to be meet with the Ministry of Education later today to discuss their next steps for the school. 

In a statement from the Ministry, they say their priority is to minimise the disruption felt by the students and the impact on their education. 

"Our emergency response team is meeting with the school team on site at present to ensure it is secure, and assess the necessary response. We will work with the school on any other support needed".

Classrooms under construction at Apanui School were engulfed at around 3am.

Eight classrooms from the school's biggest block have gone up in smoke, along with their temporary staff room and library. 

A mother whose child goes to Arapuni School says her daughter "was in tears" after hearing what happened. 

At the peak of the blaze 45 firefighters were at the scene and are now in the process of mopping up. 

Investigations continue into what sparked the fire as the cause is still deemed as unknown. 

It's not the first time the school has been damaged by fire, having been the victim of arson in 2019 .

The senior students' playground was burnt to the ground two years ago but wasn't covered by the Ministry of Education's insurance policy. 

The school's administration says 'A' block was under renovation and was due to be completed by the end of this month before it was damaged by the blaze.

"It's totalled, the whole lot. It's very unfortunate for the school as it's just had a refurbish, that area," says FENZ Fire Chief Ken Clark.  

He says he scaffolding which surrounded the building was due to come down within the next fortnight at the end of it's renovation but now it's the only thing that remains. 

No one was injured in the fire.

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