(Silver Spring, MD) —
Officials from Montgomery County, Maryland, reported that the fire at the abandoned elementary school in Silver Spring, Maryland began on Tuesday night and was contained by Wednesday morning after firefighters spent hours fighting the blaze.
Firefighters from the Montgomery County Fire Rescue Service (MCFRS) responded to reports of smoke at JoAnn Leleck Elementary School and a neighboring construction site in the 700 block of Beacon Road at approximately 9 p.m.
Around 8 a.m., Marc Elrich, the executive of Montgomery County, announced that the fire had been put out after around 10 hours and that no one had been hurt.
The Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) website states that the Silver Spring building is no longer in operation since the school has relocated.
Fire Truck Crash Injures Eight Firefighters in Southern California
According to records kept by the Montgomery County Planning Board, the project was estimated to cost over $66 million and was supposed to wrap up in August 2026.
Documents show that the new elementary school was supposed to be the largest in the county, with a projected 110,000 square feet of space.
Parents in Montgomery County are worried about the school’s stance on hate crimes and bias incidents affecting their children.
According to MCFRS, the structure is currently under construction, and upon arrival, firefighters discovered smoke rising from the roof.
On the site, firemen were seen utilizing ladders to put out the fire from above, as taken by SkyTrak7.
Over seventy-five firefighters were dispatched to the location, as reported by the authorities. Fortunately, no one has been hurt.