Small fire reported at Geneva Middle School North

A fan being used to dry freshly cleaned carpet at Geneva Middle School North caught fire early Friday morning, school and city officials said.

The preliminary cause was a malfunctioning carpet drying fan, which ignited with flames extending to a janitorial cart, according to news releases.

Firefighters extinguished the blaze in less than half an hour. No one was in the building and no one was injured, officials said.

The school, at 1357 Viking Drive, is on the city’s far west side.

The building’s fire alarm notified Geneva firefighters at 4:15 a.m.

A sprinkler system suppressed the flames at the school before firefighters arrived, according to the release.

And when they arrived, several smoke detectors were activated. Moderate smoke was on the first floor during an initial investigation.

Fire crews discovered a small fire in a first-floor common/instructional area in the school’s northeast section, the release stated.

Fire crews upgraded the fire to a General Alarm to bring in additional resources. Firefighters and paramedics from Elburn, Batavia, St. Charles and Fermilab assisted at the scene, according to the release.

District 304 Superintendent Andrew Barrett said insurance officials were at the school around noon to determine the extent and cost of the damage.

“We’re having a full assessment of that right now,” Barrett said.

“Honestly, it’s pretty limited damage,” Barrett said. “It was on the first floor in a common area outside of a group of classrooms by some lockers.”

Damage was mostly confined to one small section of the carpet where the fan was located, and water damage from putting the fire out, he said.

“The fan was a device like an industrial blower, designed to sanitize and dry. It was blowing on the carpet overnight in one of the common areas on the first floor,” Barrett said.

A fire from one of these fans is rare, he said.

“We’re talking to an inspector from the county this morning, a long-time fireman,” Barrett said. “He noted this is not the first time he’s ever heard of this, but it is pretty rare.”

The industrial-type fan is in common use in schools and other facilities.

“We’re very thankful for the fire department and our awesome operations people who jumped right in, taking care of our building,” Barrett said.

The West Chicago and North Aurora Fire and South Elgin protection districts covered both Geneva’s fire stations and stood by for additional calls while crews were at the middle school.