The chronicle=news., 1913-04-19
MEMBER OF SCHOOL
BOARD DISCUSSES
FIRE TRAP SCHOOLS"
Trinidad. colo. Aprn 10. 1871;

rNiioi Oh IN" NhIoni'lt-N News.
Dear Sir:-in your issu" OF Thurs
dai. April is:h. you printed an ar
iicic on Fire Trap School iius.s. tax
en- from the Insurance Engineering.
a magazine published In New York.
After quoting from that ar;icl. I'll"
names OF the cities that hav" school!
buildings that are fire traps. YOU
called the attention of the school
authorities In Trinidad to the mat
ter. The school board has realized
for years 'ha, he old school build
Tugs were not fire proof. School
architecture. like other lines OF busI-
ness. has improved very much In the
last thirty or forty years. Some OF
our school buildings were buIlt
thirty wears ago and nj that tim.
they We're considered models OF
what school buildings should he. At
tha, time the MS. OF cement and con-
crete as II H. used today wns un-
known and other s,p,rways than
wood Were not put la buildings in
this country. consequently our old
buildings have wood staIrways and
wood floors In the halls. When the
Centennial school was built tho
school board took ny the matter of
having stairways OF iron In the
building. hut the cost would have
been so grca, that II was prohibitive
Since that time the Use Of rcinforc-
cd concrete has been proven u sue
cess and the new hugh school build
ing has all stiirways and Railways
of this material. The school board.
realizing the condition OF the old
schools. has taken every precnution
that II could TO make the buildings
ms safe as possible. The easements
where the boilers are. have been
floorcd with ccmcn, and all wood
work that IL is possible to remove
from near the boilers has been doen.
Fire escapes have been attached TO
the school buildings so that almost
every room in school buildings in
f. District Number One have an outside
en;rurce. The doors to these en-
frances are always unlocked and are
used daily by the pupils to go In and
out so that they are as familiar with
them as they are with the stairways
| in the interior OF The building Every
door in the school buildings opens
out and all school exists are kept
unlocked during school hours. Any
school building in this district can
be emptied by use OF the fire drill
in less than ore minute. even the
Santa Fs which has now over four
hundred pupils in daily attendance.
The cottage on Fast Street is the
only wooden building that Is used
by n number of classes. Each room
in this building has a door to the
main hall in the center of the
building and likewise Il door at the
rear of the room that opens out on
the play grounds so that in case of n
panic the children can step right out
in the open air by the rear doors.
II Will be impossible for the school
board to put in fire proof stairways
and halls in the old buildings with
out practically rebuilding the school
houses over. They have had the
matter up with the architect on n
number of occasions to see what
could he done and found that the
best way was to place the outside
iron stairwafs on the buildings. In
the future we believe that 10 school
building or even addition should be
built without putting in reinforced
cement Railways and stairways and
that sufficient ground should be pur-
chased with every new site so that
the boiler house can he built de-
tached from the school building and
1t is the opinion of the board that if
any changes are made with the boil
ers in the present school buildings
that boiler houses should he built
outside of the school houses.
The school board can assure the
people o: Trinidad that they have
done everything that is possible tc
reduce the chance of accident from
fire and panic. In the course OF
time the old buildings will, we sup
pose, have to be torn down and re-
built, but at the present time. II
would not be advisable from either
IA financial or educational stand
point. Thanking You for this space
VI am. Yours truly,
"A Member of the School Board