A service vehicle caught on fire behind Apopka High School on Monday, October 17, reportedly caused by a pressure washer can that caught on fire, was accidentally dropped by a worker holding it, then rolled downhill into the vehicle next to the campus’ 600 building, according to the Apopka Fire Department.
Two people were pressure washing at the time the fire occurred. One of them was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center for evaluation, said Apopka Fire Department spokesman R.L. Colina.
During the late morning, students evacuated Apopka High School and waited outside the building for 20 minutes until they were told all was okay for them to re-enter.
According to Colina, the fire was “completely accidental.”
“It was one of those freak occurrences where the path of the van was right in the path of gravity for the can that was ignited,” Colina said.
“It appeared that they (the subcontractors) had a pressure washer in one area, and they were pressure washing, and the van was sitting downhill from them. It appears that possibly, while they were refueling, the pressure washer can caught fire, rolled into the van and from that point, it looks like the van ignited,” said Colina.
After responding to the emergency call at approximately 11:28 a.m., the Apopka Fire Department quickly brought the fire under control.
“We were able to get in there quickly, get water on it, and extinguish the fire,” Colina said.
Students used one word to described their reaction toward the fire: scared.
Senior Regan Day said she was in the 600 building when she smelled the smoke. An administrator instructed the students to leave the building and they did, she said.
Junior Gabriella Cirilo was in the school courtyard when she saw smoke streaming from a truck. When she and a friend accompanying her moved closer to the source of the smoke, flames began to shoot up.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, Colina said.
*This is a developing story.*
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