Propane fire at Greenwich Country Day School

Greenwich Fire investigators are trying to determine the cause of a propane gas tank explosion and fire Friday afternoon in the performing arts center building that is under construction at Greenwich Country Day School.

Classes had been dismissed for the day at noon and there were about 15 students on the campus in another building for a choir rehearsal, according to GCDS Headmaster Adam Rohdie. No injuries were reported in regards to students, workers or firefighters, Rohdie said.

Rohdie said the fire was discovered by workers for Turner Construction Co. which is building the private school’s performing arts center on the 400 Old Church Road campus in the center of Greenwich. The fire was reported at 3:16 p.m., according to Greenwich fire dispatch. While the fire was extinguished at 4:30 p.m., fire crews from Central Station, Cos Cob, North Street, Glenville and Sound Beach stations remained at the scene until 6:32 p.m.

Greenwich Country Day School at 400 Old Church Road is a private institution of 875 students  in grades nursery school to 9th grade, according to rohdie.

Because of the volatility of the situation, all roads leading to the school – Old Church Road from either North Street or East Putnam Avenue, and Fairfield Avenue were closed by police, who said at the scene, that they were not permitted in the area by fire officials.

According to Greenwich Fire Department Lt. Les Gilman, the initial report was that a propane tank was on fire in the basement of the performing arts center. The exact size of the tanks is not know, but Gilman said they were tanks used for heating such a facility.

“We knocked it down fairly quickly,” Gilman said. Approximately 20 paid firefighters and an undetermined number of volunteer firefighters and fire policemen were deployed.  

The cause of the fire is under investigation by the fire marshal’s office and an inspector from the town’s building department is surveying the structure to determine whether the steel super-structure of the building was compromised, according to fire and school officials. The fire marshal leading the investigation was unavailable Friday night.

“The fire department was here five minutes after the fire was reported and under control in under 10 minutes,” said Rohdie, “There were no injuries to workers or firemen – it was at quitting time,” Rohdie said. “We are grateful to the fire department which did a terrific job.”

Rohdie said the performing arts center project, the cost of which he would not reveal,  began about a year ago and was scheduled to open in September. The 12,000 suare-foot building is to house a theater with about 400 seats as well as rehearsal and classroom spaces, Rohdie said.

It is not known Friday night whether the damage would affect the completion date, Rohdie said.

With the closures of the roads leading to the school, traffic was snarled on East Putnam Avenue near the YWCA Greenwich, Christ Church and Temple Sholom. Greenwich Department of Public Works crews erected  sawhorses adorned with ‘Road Closed’ signs while members of the Glenville and Cos Cob Volunteer fire department police patrols tried to keep parents and residents at bay.

By about 4:30 p.m. Friday, parents of the choir members were allowed access to Old Church Road.

At about 4:45 p.m. Friday, Debra Tracey was allowed to access Old Church Road from East Putnam Avenue to pick up her ninth-grade daughter Allyson, who was one of the students who participated in the choir practice. Allyson said she did not see the fire or hear the explosion because she was in another building on the campus.

Rohdie said that students do not have access to the construction which is fenced off.

Rohdie said classes will reusme at their normal schedule on Monday.