Selwyn School Officials Sift Through Ashes

Fire destroys prep school in Denton, officials dig through debris

Denton ISD wants to help get kids back in the class room at The Selwyn School. Flames ripped through the prep school's main building on Thursday. Denton ISD saw the fire and donated six portable buildings and some desks and chairs.

The Selwyn School officials spent Friday sifting through ashes, remembering what was destroyed by the fire.

"Just seeing the hallways gone and everything. Missing the kids being here and the hallways and the student artwork hanging on the walls. It's been sad and emotional and overwhelming," The Selwyn School Head Master Connie Miller said.

Brad Lahart with the Denton Fire Department said one reason the fire moved quickly is because there was no active sprinkler system in the building.

"It's a large U-shaped building that has been added on to several times throughout the years. It was grandfathered into the current building codes, we believe," Lahart said.

Officials are still investigating what caused the blaze.

"They don't want to make a hypothesis until they look at all of the evidence out there," Lahart said.

As investigators continue their work, the school is ready to move forward.

"[The students] want to be back. Some of them may not miss the homework and the class work, but they want to make sure everything is all right. There has been a lot of emotion from the students, little to big," Miller said.

Miller wants classes to resume next week. With help from the community, she thinks it's possible.

"I don't even know how to go about thanking them all. Makes me love the place even more," Miller said.

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