AUBURN — Firefighters are blaming a mechanical failure in a heating unit for a small fire in the Sherwood Heights Elementary School gym that evacuated the building Monday morning.

Fire Department Deputy Chief Geoff Low said staff pulled the alarm around 8:20 a.m. when they spotted smoke.

“I think they threw water onto the heating unit, probably stopped a majority of the fire by the time the crew got there,” Low said. “We took the smouldering (air) filter outside the building and covered it with snow.” 

He said it appears the fire started in an overheated heater motor, likely because of the motor’s age.

Students and staff were allowed back in the building as soon as firefighters were finished.

There were no reports of injuries and very little smoke, just a little residual smell, Low said.