Shane W Potter

Slippery Rock Area High School students went back to class Friday, Sept. 19 after evacuating due to a tar fire on the roof, according to the district’s website.

“There was a small tar fire on the roof of the high school today. It has been extinguished, and classes are resuming as usual,” the announcement read.

According to Butler County Emergency Services dispatch, several fire companies were called around 12:50 p.m. Friday, Sept. 19, after smoke was reported in the cafeteria. Dispatchers said the school was being evacuated.

Superintendent Alfonso Angelucci told the Butler Eagle that students were able to return to classes by 1:10 p.m. as the roof fire was put out with a fire extinguisher.

“We were told that during construction they had a small bit of tar up on the roof that had caught fire,” he said. “They also told us that some of the emissions of the fire extinguisher got into the cafeteria. We weren’t sure whether it was smoke or not.”

Angelucci said that while he didn’t know how quickly the school was evacuated, it normally takes a minute-and-a-half to two minutes during fire drills.

“I’m just really impressed by the response time from emergency responders,” Angelucci added. “We can’t be more grateful. They communicated with us effectively so we could do what we needed to do and they could do what they needed.”