Orchestra room nightmare as video shows fire breaking out in US school music department

29 June 2023, 12:52 | Updated: 29 June 2023, 12:58

Footage shows a fire in the music department at a junior high school in the state of Arkansas, which left many instruments damaged.

A fire has caused damage to a music department at Ramsey Junior High, Fort Smith, in the US state of Arkansas.

The school’s CCTV footage (watch below) shows the moment flames threatened a large room of musical instruments.

The fire broke out at 11.30 on Tuesday morning. Footage shows flames coming from the corner of the music room, and smoke engulfing the room’s violins, cellos and other orchestral equipment.

The Fort Smith Fire Department arrived on the scene quickly and extinguished the fire before it spread.

A malfunctioning floor fan has been reported as the cause.

Video of Ramsey Middle School orchestra room fire

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Thankfully, no students were in the building at the time and no injuries occurred.

Though the outbreak was contained quickly, a fire official told 5NEWS that the fire impacted the school’s musical instruments. “Most of them were damaged from heat, smoke and direct flame contact,” he said.

Fort Smith Fire Department’s division chief of operations, Ethan Millard, took the opportunity to warn of the danger of using extension cords for large appliances. “We highly recommend you never use an extension chord when using objects like fans and space heaters,” he said. “We recommend plugging directly into the outlet.”

Ramsey Junior High staff are now working with a local water damage restoration service company to clean up and assess the damage to the music facilities.

They have said they are confident that the music department can be ready for the new school year which starts on 14 August.