Fire destroys abandoned St. Landry Parish school, halting future plans

A closed St. Landry Parish school caught fire about a month ago, and now officials are deciding on what to do with the property.

Now, debris and metal are dumped in piles, making the area look like a scrap yard. Morrow Elementary has been closed for more than a decade, and the St. Landry Parish School board has debated what to do with the property for some time.

In a committee meeting last Monday, Vice President and school board member for District 5 Bianca Vedell addressed the board members regarding the school. There was pushback about whether to sell the property after the fire in that meeting; however, talks to sell the property have been the topic of several board meetings since June of this year.

Vedell continued to say in that meeting that this property could potentially benefit the community, particularly the students in the area.

After the fire, St. Landry parish government has assisted with cleanup efforts and in a statement to KATC, Parish President Bellars says:

“We handled the cleanup for them. The superintendent called us the morning of the fire, and we immediately started the cleanup process. Essentially, our role has been to assist with the cleanup and help prepare the site for sale.”

Also in a statement to KATC, SLPSB Director of Operations Claudia Blanchard said:

Since the fire, the St. Landry Parish School Board stopped the plans to sell school property.

We did reach out to Fire District Seven to ask questions about how the fire started, but we have not heard back.

To listen to the committee from Monday, September 23, you can click here.