THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 5, 1995 TAG: 9511050068
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KEVIN ARMSTRONG, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 51 lines
School and insurance officials have determined that a Sept. 1 fire at Princess Anne High School resulted in an estimated $7 million in damages.
The insurance claim to Aetna, calculated by architects and engineers, will cover design fees, asbestos abatement, expenses for demolition and reconstruction, building contents and other damage.
While work is under way to repair the damaged facility, a group of parents and staff at Princess Anne hopes to convince the School Board to rebuild the school with improvements and additions they say are long overdue.
Before the fire, Princess Anne was the city's oldest high school still in use. Built in 1954, it serves 2,700 students.
The push to rebuild a bigger school is called ``Operation Phoenix'' by supporters who plan to appear before the School Board on Tuesday and the City Council on Nov. 14 to ask that more money be allocated for the project beyond what will be covered by insurance.
Meanwhile, most Princess Anne classes are being held inside Celebration Station, a former shopping mall on Virginia Beach Boulevard, two miles east of the campus.
Students are slowly being moved back to the school as clean-up work is completed. Several steps already have been taken to repair the 200 hall, a two-story wing that suffered most of the fire damage:
ENRECON, a fire restoration company, has shored up the structure and installed a temporary roof.
Hargrove, Brockwell and Associates has prepared an asbestos abatement plan, which will take about 90 days to complete.
HBA also is developing demolition and restoration plans for the 200 hall, library, cafeteria and auditorium.
Officials hope to have all of that work completed by January 1997.
The 300, 500, 600 and 700 halls have been cleared of asbestos and smoke and water damage. Cleaning and restoration of equipment in those halls, however, will continue for several more weeks. That also will include work on electrical, mechanical, fire alarm and public address systems.
School officials say that science, art, technology and culinary arts laboratories in the 300 and 600 halls should be ready for use in time for the second semester of this school year.
A 19-classroom addition that was under construction before the fire broke out is nearing completion and should be ready in mid-December.
KEYWORDS: FIRES ARSON PRINCESS ANNE HIGH SCHOOL by CNB