Over the summer, an electrical fire broke out around the lower C and G building at St. Charles High School. According to Assistant Principal Jeff Thorne, no one was hurt thanks to the quick actions of Coach Mark Budde who was there for an off-season basketball tournament. The fire filled smoke all throughout the G building resulting in the G building and the main gym smelling heavily of smoke. 

The fire was put out quickly, but cleanup took several weeks. All sports equipment had to be professionally dry cleaned, which would have cost a lot if not for it being covered by insurance.

 During that time, some teams had to move practices to different areas of the school. The high school wrestling team had to move their off season camp to St. Charles West’s wrestling room. 

“If their mats weren’t so hard I probably wouldn’t have minded,” sophomore Grace Lorenz said. Students said it was frustrating not having their normal space, but most understood that safety came first. 

The damage also gave the school a chance to check electrical systems and make improvements to prevent future problems. Nobody really knows what caused it; they just went downstairs and heard a lot of popping and cracking, Thorne said. 

Now that repairs are finished, teams are back in their regular rooms however teams are still dealing with the fallout from the fire. The wrestling room and others were filled with unorganized uniforms and warmups from the dry cleaner which had to be organized and put up correctly which was very time costly.

“I don’t think it’s that big of a deal,” Lorenz said.  “I mean as long as I can help my team and be a successful team that’s all that really matters.” 

The fire was an unexpected setback, but it brought the school’s sports community closer and showed how well everyone could adapt under pressure.