The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-02-12
Central High School
 Burned to the Ground Early This Morning
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 principal of Central High, and c. E. l Glenn, assistant superintendent, were also on the scene
 Chief Middleton led the fight on the blaze Every available fire company
 in the city was summonsed and police
 men and soldiers gave ready assist | ance At one time there were 21
 streams playing on the building from all sides. The water, however lacked 1 pressure, and did little good. The 1 flames, instead of diminishing, gained 1 headway. Soon after the fire was dis covered. the building was a complete mass of flames. and brilliant glow went skyward and was visible from all parts of the city.
 l Police were forced to form a fire l line to keep the enormous crowd of I spectators from the danger zone. 1 Ropes were stretched and no one was allowed to enter. Military police rem dered great assistance both to the po- l lice and fire fighters.
 ORIGIN OF FIRE l Chief Middleton and city officials are at loss as to how the fire started. There was no fire in the building at any time during the night, According to the fire chief. the blaze either caught from defective wiring, causing 1 short circuit or was of incendiary origin.
 | nio oh N chnaD. was not in the building when the 1 blaze started 1T made my rounds all 1 over the building at 1:30 o'clock he said, and found everything all right. l was sick and went home to get some medicine. and while there I noticed l the flames I immediately turned in l the alarm but someone else had pre- 1 ceded me.
 l sIn my opinion, the fire either started from shors circuit or was iiset afire intentionally. There wassno l fire in the building, at least no where near the auditorium, where the blaze started The boiler room had the usual 1 fire, but it was intact while the fire 1 was in progress
 l SOLDlEKS GIVE ALARM l The alarm was turned in by three military police who happened to be passing Sergt. l.. H. Bonn, Corporal Cain and Serst. ]. Neil were riding past the school in an automobile -four passage" said Bonn, was prac- tically blocked by the dense smoke We saw it was coming from the build l ing and immediately got out of our | car.
 we fired a few shots. hoping to i attract attention. In few minutes l lea ping flames came from the rear of
 the structure, and before the firemen could arrive spread to other portions
 Of the building.
 The fire, in my opinion, gained headway too swiftly to be of incen- diary origin. I went into the building I before the flames gained too great a I headway but could not get near enough to the blaze to get an idea how it started.' M 1 Dd. Phillips was of the opinion 1 that the fire was the work of an in- ! cendiary. .Following so closely after 1 tue ueSlructloH Ol the iidte Nlts school" he said q cannot help but 1 believe someone set the building on l fire. There was no occa sion for the l fire to start in the auditorium, as no 1 fires are ever allowed there.
 GREAT LOSS TO CITY The loss is a great one to the city.
 The building was modern in every ca pacity and will be hard to replace. I
 have no idea now what we will do for a 1 high school building in the future
 That will be decided later
 1 Chief Middleton arrived on the scene about five minutes after the alarm was received. He did not have
 an opportunity to investigate. but stated, from his observations of the 1 rapidity with which the blaze spread Il
 could not have been of incendiary origin.
 ! The burning of the school presented 1 an awe-inspiring sight. The center of ! the huildine, consisting chiefly of hallways, gave the flames a good foot 1 ing The flames leaped through the roof to great height and formed q ilSiit NiiicH udtcfi idliy GiuEut tHc Ire
 men in their work.
 While the firemen Were devotins
 most of their attention to the west. or 1, rear side of the building, fire became
 visible on the east side. Soon flames
 cracked the window glasses and the I blaze leaped through, burning the electric wires on the sidewalk. SPREAD NORTH AND SOUTH 1 From the central part of the structure on the east side the flames spreao north and south finally reaching tn, | library, which Is on the second floor on | the south side. The chemical laboratory
 on the third floor on the northern side l was later reached, but no explosions were recorded.
 1 Tie wood work departments and the 1 gymnasium were next consumed Fire men entered the building from the east entrance with five lines of hose. at- 1 tempting to combat the blaze. Their et-
 forts were futile, however, and they had been out of the building only a few l minutes when the wall fell. l few minutes later the many large rafters and beams in the roof fell l crushing through the two floors ano landing in the basement, giving the rrt
 an additional start. Little opposition to