South Bay grade school rebuilt after fire

Finally, home.

As more than 100 parents, teachers and students last night filled the newly minted hallways of South Bay Elementary School in West Babylon, oohs and aahs echoed off the freshly painted walls.

"It's amazing," said parent Jimmy Gallagher, 50, who bounced with a child's giddiness from room to room as son Gianni, 5, took it all in. "It's incredible what they put into it in the time they had."

It's been more than 18 months since the 300-plus students at South Bay had a place to call their own. On the night of Feb. 18, 2010, a fire broke out at the school, which was closed for winter recess. No one was injured, but the blaze gutted the building. The town fire marshal's report declared the fire accidental, the result of combustible painting materials being stuffed into plastic bags and left by a contractor working on the gym floor.

Students resumed classes a week after the fire at Our Lady of Grace Roman Catholic Church nearby.

"The community has been wonderful through the 18 months but everyone is so excited to be back home," said West Babylon Superintendent Anthony Cacciola. "We made a home at Our Lady of Grace but our real home is South Bay."

The new building, which officials said is the same size as the previous structure, has been described as state-of-the-art. It includes Smart Boards and computers in every classroom, new appliances in the kitchen and an impact-resistant floor in the gym, Principal JoAnn Scott said. The building has Wi-Fi and is disabled-accessible, she said.

"Our cafeteria and stage look like a Broadway theater," said Scott. "We came from a 1950s vintage building to a 21st-century building."

The original building had a wooden roof and frame, which officials said helped the fire spread. The new building, constructed by Belfor Property Restoration, has a steel roof. Sprinklers, missing from the original building, will still be absent. Cacciola said fire code does not require them and they are costly. He said the steel roof "is most important" and each classroom has emergency escape windows.

The entire building, as well as the $25,000 monthly cost of renting Our Lady of Grace, was covered by the school's insurance company, Cacciola said.

For Wednesday's first day of classes, officials said they don't want to devote too much attention to the new environment, as many kids will be nervous starting school.

"We want to try and keep it business as usual," Scott said. "You don't want to minimize that this is a truly exciting event for the community but at the same time we're trying to keep it a little bit reined in so that we can conduct school."

Even the rain that fell steadily through last night's ribbon-cutting couldn't dampen spirits. "As far as I'm concerned, the sun is shining," Cacciola said.

But Gabriella Laucella said she was disappointed as she finished peeking into the new library. "It makes me upset that I can't use it," said the 11-year-old, who graduated to junior high last year.

IMPORTANT DATES

Feb. 18, 2010: A fire breaks out just after 10:30 p.m. at South Bay Elementary, gutting the building. No one is hurt.

Feb. 23, 2010: More than 300 students from South Bay return to classes in their temporary home at nearby Our Lady of Grace Roman Catholic Church.

March 2, 2010: West Babylon's school board votes unanimously to rebuild South Bay Elementary.

Oct. 5, 2010: A groundbreaking ceremony is held at the site of South Bay Elementary, marking the start of rebuilding efforts.