Saturday, October 17, 2009

Explosion in Muslim school basement ruled accidental.


Unh-huh. So riddle me this Batman. Why are the authorities still trying to interview the school's maintenance worker after a week has passed? And if forensic tests are still being run how can an accidental ruling be arrived at?

Ihsan School of Explosions Excellence. --->

Nothing to see here, folks. Move along now.

An explosion in the basement of a private Islamic school has been ruled accidental, said Syracuse fire investigator Ken Heffernan.

The Ihsan School of Excellence, on West Onondaga Street near the intersection with West Street, was evacuated Oct. 8 after the explosion sent a dust cloud and natural gas into the building, investigators said.

The 75 children were safely removed from the school building, which has remained closed since.

The FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were contacted by investigators looking into the explosion because the West Onondaga Street school is considered a place of worship.

But now investigators believe a piece of faulty equipment triggered the explosion. Forensic tests are being performed on items from the basement. Investigators are trying to interview the building's maintenance worker, Heffernan said.

The students resumed school Wednesday at Al-Huda Mosque near Onondaga Community College, said Ashraf Attia, a business professor at the State University of Oswego who serves on Ihsan's board of directors. Attia said the school is working with its insurance company to repair the building in Syracuse. The explosion caused asbestos to get into the air, Heffernan said.

"We don't have a clear picture yet," Attia said. "We're working to bring it back to where it was."

Where's the maintenance worker at, Dr. Attia?

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