Police: Maria Carrillo High School student arrested after fire on school campus

The school’s fire alarm system went off as it was supposed to and students evacuated their classrooms, police said. No one was injured during the incident, which took place about 2:30 p.m. Thursday.|
JEREMY HAY
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

A Maria Carrillo High School student was arrested Thursday on suspicion of arson after allegedly causing a fire in a refrigerator on the school’s campus in east Santa Rosa, police said.

The 16-year-old student – after hopping a fence with another student – allegedly lit a leaf on fire and put it in an unplugged refrigerator behind the school’s Art Building, Santa Rosa Police Sgt. Matt Crosbie said in a news release.

The fire grew and eventually the entire appliance, which was positioned against the exterior wall of the building, was “engulfed“ in flames, Crosbie said.

The school’s fire alarm system went off as it was supposed to and students evacuated their classrooms, he said. No one was injured during the incident, which took place about 2:30 p.m. Thursday.

The student’s name was withheld because of their age, Crosbie said. Police could not be reached Thursday night for further details and information about damage to the building wasn’t immediately available.

Staff and Santa Rosa firefighters extinguished the fire, Crosbie said. The student was booked into Sonoma County Juvenile Hall.

You can reach Staff Writer Jeremy Hay at 707-387-2960 or jeremy.hay@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jeremyhay

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