WOLFE COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — School administrators are responding to a structure fire that engulfed the Dessie Scott School in flames on Thursday night.
The school's principal, Robert Scott Creech, saw the charred remains of the school for the first time in the daylight with LEX 18 crews on Friday.
"A lot of pride in our community and in our school system that we lost overnight here, and I feel bad for our kids on campus and the community here," said Creech.
The brick walls of the gym are all that remains of the 100-year-old building. The school served boys ages 12 to 21 on the autism spectrum or who had developmental delays.
"Grief, that's what this is," said Joy Delisle. "It's a loss, so how do we help them through grief? How do we help them adjust? How do we help them to move forward?"
Delisle is the CEO of Buckhorn Therapeutic Services, which owns the building and handles care for the students. Delisle told LEX 18 that an additional therapy plan was put into place Friday.
"These children already have a more difficult time adjusting to things, transition, change. Those are difficult," she said.
The community has already shown an outpouring of support. Creech told LEX18 that it's greatly appreciated.
"We live in a resilient community here and we'll do our best to build back and make it better than what it was," said Creech.
Fortunately, no one was inside of Dessie Scott School at the time of the incident and no injuries were reported.
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