Yellowknife (Aug 07/06) - Four classrooms and a mini-gym at Ecole St. Joseph school were destroyed Thursday night in what police are calling a suspicious fire.

There are no suspects at this time, said RCMP Sgt. Darcy Fleury.

"We have quite a list of people we have to talk to," he said.

Police and the Yellowknife Fire Department are still investigating the fire, but Yellowknife Catholic Schools (YCS) superintendent Kern Von Hagen is convinced the fire was deliberate.

The fire at Ecole St. Joseph school burned well into the night Thursday. Twenty firefighters and two chief officers, with the help of airport firefighters and city workers responded to the call. - Emily Watkins/NNSL photo

"There is no doubt this is arson," he said. "It started in the crawl space underneath one of the portables."

Firefighters were called in shortly before 8 p.m. Thursday.

Hundreds of Yellowknifers, including St. Joe's principal Flo Campbell, teachers, parents and students watched as 20 firefighters battled flames for several hours.

At about 11 p.m., an excavator was called in to tear down a hallway that connected the four portable classrooms and mini-gymnasium to the rest of the school. In the end, the entire structure collapsed and continued to smolder well into Friday.

A concrete fire wall kept the flames from spreading to the rest of the school, although there is expected to be some smoke and water damage.

Acting fire chief Darcy Hernblad said it was a difficult fire to fight and that at one point, crews believed the fire was under control, only to have it flare up again.

"When firefighters arrived, there was a lot of fire and smoke coming underneath the skirting (of a portable)," he said.

Fire crews had to change from an "aggressive attack" to a "defensive" stand, said Hernblad because the fire was already in the walls and flooring of the portables, making it impossible to save them.

City fire crews were aided by firefighters from the airport and city public works staff.

The destroyed classrooms are believed to have contained desks, curriculum materials and other items, ready for the start of school.

Smoke from the blaze was so thick it blanketed the area for hours. Dozens of residents of 100 and 200 Beck Court apartment buildings were evacuated. Some were allowed back Thursday night, while others stayed the night with family or friends or in hotel rooms.

Students were shocked to see part of their school go up in flames.

"I'm really sad," said new student, 12-year-old Amanda Shawm, who will attend St. Joe's when classes resume Aug. 29.

"I would put them in jail for eternity," said Grade 3 Nathan Dunne, angry at the possibility someone might have set the fire deliberately.

YCS board chair Shannon Gullberg said this isn't the first time St. Joe's has been hit by fire.

"Someone tried to start a fire at the back entrance of the school about a year and a half ago," she said.

Insurance adjusters are set to visit the site over the weekend to get an accurate assessment of the damage and its cost, said Gullberg.

The loss of four portables means classrooms for around 80 to 100 or more Grade 4 and 5 students must be found in the next couple of weeks.

Von Hagen said YCS may have to lease commercial space for classrooms.

The school housed 597 Kindergarten-Grade 8 students last year, 14 students over its capacity.

YCS's other two schools are also full to capacity.

The school is to receive an $18.9 million renovation in 2007.