West Seattle Crime Watch: Chief Sealth HS project vandalism

Just got word that vandal(s) hit the Chief Sealth High School – permanent campus – project overnight. According to a report provided by the Southwest Precinct, the construction crew arrived first thing this morning “to discover someone(s) broke into the secured school … set fire to a cabinet / cork boards, and broke multiple skylights and other interior windows.” The report elaborates:

They set a wood cabinet on fire, which caught nearby corkboards on fire. Numerous interior windows as well as skylights were extensively damaged. Several beer cans were left behind, as well as blood smears from where (the) suspect may have been cut. The fire alarm had been disabled due to reconstruction.

The report also says construction workers had reported graffiti vandalism and a “trash-can fire” the day before, which might have been the work of the same vandal(s). Detectives are doing followup work now, and the blood smears provided potential DNA evidence. We will check with Seattle Public Schools regarding damage estimate from this vandalism and what’s going to be done to step up security. 7:04 PM UPDATE: A district spokesperson says that information won’t be available till tomorrow.

4 Replies to "West Seattle Crime Watch: Chief Sealth HS project vandalism"

  • Mike March 17, 2009 (4:54 pm)

    Totally pointless vandalism. Thanks for costing everyone more in taxes for repairs #%#@. I hope they find whoever was involved and keep them locked up. Wonder if they’re the same ones vandalizing cars around West Seattle too. This would be a step towards worse things to come.

  • rockergirl March 17, 2009 (5:19 pm)

    Guess we’re lucky they didn’t burn the building/school down – which it appears they could have done since the fire alarms are not working during construction. Hopefully the dna evidnce will get them busted.

  • rdsalsbury March 18, 2009 (10:56 am)

    This type of vandalism will undoubtedly happen at the Pathfinder School site once the school is shuttered this June. It will only be a matter of time. There are many hidden spots in and around the school buildings that are out of sight from the eyes of neighbors and the public, and which will become targets for vandalism and fires such as the one that happened at Sealth HS. I wonder if the School District has any plans to protect the soon-to-be old Pathfinder School and its neighbors from this type of harmful “thrill” activity. And, I wonder, too, if they plan to allocate money to protect the community from the damage that is wrought when buildings are vacant.

  • alki50 March 19, 2009 (7:02 am)

    Poor time to disconnect the alarm! The risk of a fire is much higher during construction.

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