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Woodson Fire Was Set, Say Investigators

Thursday, May 23, 2002

A fire that began in a 4th floor janitor's closet at HD Woodson Sr. High School today was deliberately set, according to DC Fire Investigators.

Automatic alarms began sounding about 11:15 am as smoke poured out of the closet and students evacuated the school, located in the 5500 block of Eads St., NE. There were no injuries reported, but investigators have noticed a disturbing trend. They've been called to Woodson five times in the last month for fires, all of which have been determined to be incendiary.

"This is a very dangerous situation that seems to come back every year," said Richard Fleming, head of fire investigations. "Toward the end of the school year, kids, it seems, want to get out early, so they'll set a fire. They might think it's an innocent prank, but someone could really get hurt."

Three juveniles have been detained in connection with a fire set May 3rd. All of the other cases remain open and continue to be aggressively investigated.

If you have information on these crimes or any other set fire in the District, please call the arson tip line at 202-673-ARSON. All information is confidential.