Police probe weekend vandalism spree as dozens of school buses taken out of service

Vandals used fire extinguishers to damage dozens of Winnipeg School Division buses and an elementary school in a pair of weekend break-ins, disrupting transportation or lessons for potentially hundreds of students.

Several buses were taken out of service, resulting in cancellations or delays on some routes Monday, after 45 parked vehicles were damaged in a lot on Selkirk Avenue, west of Keewatin Street.

“We occasionally will have a fire extinguisher stolen or a little bit of damage, but this was certainly the largest-scale vandalism that we’ve seen in our (transportation) yard,” said Matt Henderson, superintendent of Manitoba’s largest school division.

“The result of that was a number of bus routes had to be cancelled (Monday), which is really problematic. There’s an added stress on families to get their children to school.”

He said fire extinguishers were stolen from about 30 buses and sprayed inside the vehicles. Some windshields were smashed.

A few kilometres away, areas inside Principal Sparling School had to be cleaned by specialists after people broke in — triggering a security alarm — and sprayed fire extinguishers at about 7:45 p.m. Sunday.

“That meant for the first part of the day, students had to be in the gym and outdoors with their teachers, in activities and all those types of things, but it was certainly disruptive,” Henderson said.

The school, located on Sherburn Street, south of Notre Dame Avenue, in the city’s West End, has about 170 students from nursery to Grade 6. A child-care centre is located in the school.

Police spokeswoman Const. Dani McKinnon said no one has been arrested, and officers continue to investigate. The vandalism to the buses was also reported to police. Damage estimates were not yet available.

Henderson said as of Monday afternoon there was no indication the incidents were linked. He said he was “very angry” after learning about the vandalism.

“We have 5,000 staff who work tremendously hard every single day to meet the needs of learners, to provide high-quality education and to provide all sorts of incredible experiences for children,” he said.

“When something like this happens, it really puts a barrier into work that’s already challenging. It’s joyful work, but it’s challenging, and so I feel for my staff and for those folks who have had to bear the brunt of this.”

Some bus routes were cancelled or delayed even though WSD put additional buses into service. An email to parents and guardians apologized and said normal operations are expected to resume as early as Tuesday.

“We’re still doing a little bit of a triage and ensuring those buses that can be back on the road can get back on the road,” Henderson said.

“We do have our own mechanics and our own shop on site, but there may be other things that we have to make (insurance) claims for.”

The transportation yard is a fenced, open-air lot where about 90 buses are stored. The damage was discovered when staff arrived at work Monday morning.

Security guards conduct occasional patrols to ensure the lot is in order and locked.

“We’re looking at all options now in terms of having permanent security guards there and other measures to make sure that we’re protecting our fleet,” Henderson said.

He said police were sent to Principal Sparling School after the break-in, which occurred when a window was broken and a door was propped open.

Contractors were brought in to clean up the mess created by the use of fire extinguishers. An email to parents and guardians said classrooms were not damaged.

Parent Jackie Cooney-Birch, who has two children who attend Principal Sparling, learned of the situation when she arrived to drop off her kids at the child-care centre that operates inside the school.

She said they were greeted by an employee wearing a face mask.

“We were told the school was full of dust because the fire extinguishers were set off,” Cooney-Birch said.

She was disappointed by the vandalism.

“It’s distressing to wonder whether some of the property may have been ruined, or whether the learning environment is going to be affected,” Cooney-Birch said.

Henderson said the incidents will result in a financial cost to the division and a cost to student learning.

“Particularly with the bus yard, many students who have exceptional needs or disabilities may not have been able to come to school today, and that’s a massive cost, particularly when for some of our schools we’re serving breakfast and lunch,” he said.

“I don’t know what logic goes into someone’s mind to destroy property, particularly school property like this, but they have a tremendous cost.”

The division’s insurance premiums increase when a claim is filed. Some repairs can be conducted by division staff, including carpenters or auto mechanics.

“There’s an opportunity cost there because that means they’re not working on other things,” Henderson said.

chris.kitching@winnipegfreepress.com