PLEASANT VIEW — A blaze at Weber High School on Friday morning led to damage in and around the main gym at the school, mainly from water emitted by the facility’s fire sprinkler system.

The fire apparently started due to some sort of chemical reaction caused after rags with chemical residue on them were placed in a trash can near the gym, said Lane Findlay, the district spokesperson. The floor in the gym is being overhauled and the rags had been used as part of that work.

The sprinkler system quickly doused the fire — an alarm sounded around 9 a.m. Friday — but kept emitting water, resulting in flooding in the main gym, adjacent hallways and the school’s second gym. Water was about an inch deep in some spots, resulting in more damage than caused by the blaze.

Cleanup efforts are underway and Findlay estimates the cost could be “thousands of dollars,” though the school should be ready when classes start late next month. Officials’ main concern is if the water seeped under the wooden floors of the two gyms, which could cause warping.

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