By John Ferrannini

Lafayette Elementary School and the Lincoln Park Playground were damaged by two suspicious fires each last month.

Lafayette Elementary School in the Outer Richmond neighborhood suffered damage from two fires in May.

At Lafayette, the first fire occurred on May 1. It destroyed the parent teacher association’s storage container. The second, late May 18, destroyed part of the school’s playground.

Erin Feher Montoya, president of the Lafayette Elementary PTA, called the second fire “truly heartbreaking and understandably unnerving.”

The causes of the fires are unknown, and both are still under investigation. There were no injuries or deaths in either.

“We are very glad that in both cases, no one was injured, and the main school building was not damaged,” a San Francisco Unified School District spokesperson stated. “We understand that two incidents in a short time are concerning, and we are working closely with the Fire Department to investigate both cases. The cause remains under investigation, and we are taking the situation very seriously. Until the investigation is complete, we are not making assumptions about the causes of the fires. The safety of our students and staff remains our top priority.

“Emergency procedures have been reviewed and reinforced, and all affected areas have been secured,” the spokesperson continued. “School operations continue as normal, and students are learning in a safe and supportive environment. We have arranged supervised alternatives for outdoor play. In addition, we are working with our wellness teams to provide additional support to students in school.”

A district spokesperson noted that no one was harmed by the first fire.

“We are very glad that no one was injured in the fire that occurred involving Lafayette Elementary’s storage shed,” the spokesperson said. “The safety of our students, staff, and community is always our top priority, and we are relieved that everyone is safe. The school is committed to supporting recovery efforts and will keep the school community informed as we move forward. We are grateful to our emergency responders for their swift action and our families for their continued support during this time.”

District officials declined to make the school’s principal available for comment, stating that, “The principal is very busy as the school year wraps up focusing on ensuring a smooth transition for students and staff to summer break.”

“We have reason to think someone might have been sleeping in the storage shed,” Montoya speculated about the first fire.

“Someone sent me a picture the day before” of T-shirts and string lights that should’ve been in the shed on the ground outside. We didn’t put it together till after it caught on fire,” she said. “But that’s not a confirmed thing.”

The origins of the storage unit date to 2019, when it was placed there during construction work.

“The PTA started using it for storage, for carnival games, sweatshirts, stuff like that,” Montoya said.

It also included popcorn, cotton candy and snow cone machines, hats and beanies, handmade carnival games, bounce houses, decorations, face paint, Chinese food containers and Halloween decorations.

The PTA, the city’s oldest, had just held its big gala the weekend before, Montoya said. The money raised was for educator positions.

“We need at least $10,000 for a new storage container, but the community has been really great,” she said. “We put out an Amazon wish list and the community jumped in.”

Among things people bought were new cotton candy and popcorn machines.

“We don’t want to ask for more money but if they (community members) want to help restock we’ll share that list,” she said.

The list is available at https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1SDSYHFPRB7WK/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_2.

This is the end of Montoya’s second and last year as PTA president.

Lincoln Park Playground

Two suspicious fires also occurred at Lincoln Park Playground at Clement Street and 33rd Avenue.

According to a press release from SFFD, on Saturday, May 10, at approximately 11 p.m., a 911 caller reported a playground slide on fire at Lincoln Park Playground. SFFD crews responded and extinguished the fire within seven minutes. There are no reported injuries or a cause of the fire. The fire did not spread to additional structures.

The release also described another fire at the same location: “On Wednesday, May 21, at approximately 11 p.m., multiple 911 callers reported a fire at an outside play structure at Lincoln Park Playground. SFFD crews found the play structure and surrounding vegetation on fire. This fire was contained within 30 minutes, and no injuries or causes were reported.”

On Wednesday, May 28, SFPD issued a press release about a recent arrest of a suspected arsonist.

“On May 26, San Francisco police officers working in plainclothes capacity were patrolling in the Richmond District following recent suspicious fires that occurred in the area,” the release said. “Officers were around La Playa and Balboa streets at approximately 1:30 a.m., when they observed a male, later identified as 29-year-old Joseph Martinez, igniting objects while walking in a park. Officers later observed a large active working fire.

“The San Francisco Fire Department responded to the scene to extinguish the fire.”

“Officers canvassed the area and located Martinez and placed him under arrest.

“Martinez was booked into San Francisco County Jail for the following charge: arson, possession of incendiary device with the intent to set fire to structure or forest land, possession of methamphetamine, possession of controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.”

SFPD shared that it is aware of several recent suspicious fires in the Richmond District, and they are continuing to work with the San Francisco Fire Department in the joint Arson Task Force to investigate these cases.

“Although an arrest has been made, this remains an open and active investigation,” SFPD reported. “Anyone with information is asked to contact the SFPD at 415-575-4444 or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD. SFPD# 250293302.”

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