Police: Man Breaks Into Chelsea H.S., Goes Wild With Fire Extinguisher

newyork.cbslocal.com...

At Least 17 People Treated, Including Students And Safety Officers

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — Emergency responders were treating several students after an incident at Liberty High School for Newcomers in Chelsea.

It all took place at around 1:30 p.m. Friday. A man entered the school illegally looking for a former teacher, according to police.

Sources told CBS 2 the man is a 24-year-old former student.

When he was questioned by school safety officers, the man grabbed a fire extinguisher off the wall and ran upstairs spraying the extinguisher as he went, sources said.


“There were kids dangling out of the window. They were on their phones, they were crying. At one point they screamed and one girl looked like she wasd trying to jump out. And the police were like no no no stay in,” witness Debra Fisher said.

The man was taken into custody.

Three school safety officers suffered minor injuries while subduing the suspect, sources said.

At least 14 other people, including students, were also being treated for difficulty breathing after being exposed to the cloud of extinguisher material.

Apparently crazy people will do crazy things even if they don't have a gun.

reply to post by network dude


Trying to read his actions, he probably grabbed it and fired, and realizing that the police and school staff were going to get him anyway, he just took it to the limit and sprayed his little heart out.

Not similar, but this was fun: I once passed a school which was being demolished, and asked the crew chief if I could throw a rock and break a window. He said come back after they'd left, and toss away. Which I did, must have broken over half a dozen windows in a grade school with well thrown rocks from a distance. A proud day.

A man entered the school illegally looking for a former teacher, according to police.

I'm sorry, I can't resist.... Is there a 'LEGAL' way to go about hunting down a teacher right over the top of school resource cops? No one was more than a bit hurt, and most by their own reactions to read this...so I don't feel too bad about noting something that jumped out so badly to me.

Anyway... What are the status of School Resource people in that area? I'm wondering how he just ran over the first contact with them and went right on in? Thank goodness he didn't have a gun, because he made fools and worthless bookends of what was there to prevent exactly what he did.

I know at my school from having had issues, school resource officers are not legally permitted to even search a student. They could be carrying something OBVIOUS for what it may be under clothing or they could have been SEEN pocketing something ...and if they refuse to cooperate, it's a sick comedy of a standoff, by how it was explained to me on two different levels. School cops are SO gutted and powerless, they can't even do a light search for clear cause.

What good are they, as this story really causes me to ask? No one died here...but NO thanks to these school cops who got pushed to the side like spectators.