About 300 children and teachers evacuated or rescued after fire breaks
out at a Tokyo school
[June 19, 2026]
By MARI YAMAGUCHI
TOKYO (AP)
— A fire broke out at an elementary school in downtown Tokyo Friday, but
all of about 300 students and teachers were evacuated or rescued,
officials said.
They said several people were injured while fleeing, mostly from
inhaling smoke, and that the exact number of injured is being finalized. |
Firefighters work at the site of a fire at an elementary school in
Tokyo, Friday, June 19, 2026. (Kyodo News via AP) |
|
The Tokyo Fire Department said the fire at the Takinogawa No. 3
Elementary School broke out near a music room on the top floor
of the four-story building late morning Friday.
Firefighters rescued one teacher and three schoolchildren out of
the building with non-life-threatening injuries, the department
said.
All others inside the building when the fire broke out had
evacuated to a nearby park on their own and no one was left
behind, officials said.
The Kyodo News Agency said a total of 11 people were injured,
including a teacher with a broken hip and two children with
broken arms.
Television footage showed black smoke billowing out of windows
on the fourth floor, as firefighters combated the fire at the
scene. Dozens of fire engines were deployed. The fire was
extinguished later in the afternoon.
A 11-year-old boy told Kyodo News that he heard people shouting
“Run!” when he was in an English class. He said that, even
though he was frightened, he repeated his teacher’s call for
students to stay calm.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
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