Fire damages Catharine Blaine Elementary School in Magnolia

Catharine Blaine Elementary School is closed Monday after the building caught fire on Sunday evening, Feb. 12.

Seattle Police and Seattle Fire responded to the Magnolia school fire in the early evening on Sunday night just before 7:30 p.m.

A witness told SPD that they saw a man setting a fire in an alcove near one of the school entrances. When the building caught fire, the man left the scene.

SPD says the man was described as “a white male in his 30’s with sandy brown shoulder length hair and shaggy brown beard. The suspect was last seen wearing a gray beanie, girls purple coat with white stripes and girls black yoga pants.”

SPD says the fire caused “substantial damage” to the school, having spread to the interior before it was extinguished. The cost of repairs is unknown, SPD says, and the SPD Arson/Bomb detectives will be leading the investigation.

In a message to families, the principal Patrick Gray said Catherin Blain K-8 will be closed on Monday, Feb. 13.

The damage was in a storage area just inside the entrance to the kindergarten, Gray said in his message, and didn’t directly damage any classrooms.

“The majority of the impact is smoke related and is significant enough that district leaders and I have made the decision to cancel classes tomorrow, in order to allow sufficient time for additional clean up and to ensure the building is safe and ready for students to return,” Gray said.

SPD asks that if you have any information about this incident, please call SPD Violent Crimes Tip Line at (206) 233-5000.

Photos: SPD