Witness statements, burn characteristics and the exclusion of accidental causes have led authorities to open an arson investigation into last week's massive building fire at the University Laboratory School.

The June 13 fire leveled the 67-year-old L-shaped building that housed the Lab School's orchestra, chorus, theater and athletic programs. University of Hawai'i offices were also in the Metcalf Street structure. Fire officials said damage estimates are $6 million for the building and $500,000 for contents, but school officials have said those figures could go up.

Results of a nearly weeklong investigation were released yesterday.

"After coordinating all of the witness accounts and all of the physical evidence, all of the burn patterns and then rechecking everything again, and of course with the destruction being so complete, the investigators concluded that it was intentionally set," said Capt. Kenison Tejada, Honolulu Fire Department spokesman.

After the announcement, interim Principal Peter Estomago said he wasn't sure if he should be "surprised or angry." He said he is just glad that the arsonist's actions didn't cause injuries or loss of life.

"It's a challenge but we just need to stay positive," he said. "Now that the investigation has concluded, we have to figure out what are we going to do and what kind of changes need to be made."

Those changes could include ramped-up security, he said, but those issues still need to be discussed with University of Hawai'i officials. The school is a charter school operated by the College of Education at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa's Curriculum, Research and Development Group.

Randy Hitz, dean of the College of Education, said it was too early to "speak about long-term plans."

"We are discouraged to hear that (someone) deliberately set a fire," Hitz said.

He said he was grateful for the community response to the fire. The University of Hawai'i Foundation has set up a special "College of Education/University Laboratory School Fire Recovery Fund," which had received $21,245 as of Sunday.

Since the fire, UH has increased security in the area, mainly to keep people away from the site, he said.

Tejada declined to go into detail as to what led investigators to their conclusion but said they did rule out all other possible causes.

"They do eliminate all of the accidental causes, which would be such things as electrical, if there were candles or any kind of open flames in the building, anything to do with those sort of causes," he said.

He did say that the fire apparently began where the school's theater once stood.

VULNERABLE TO FIRE

Tejada said the investigation "took some time" because of the extent of the damage and because the department was working with an investigator from the Mainland who was hired by the company that insured the building.

The case has been turned over to police, who have opened their first case since a new law creating the charge of arson was enacted this month. A conviction for first-degree arson carries up to 15 years in prison and a $50,000 fine, said police spokesman Capt. Frank Fujii.

Fujii yesterday also would not discuss specifics of the case, but said police have interviewed "some witnesses."

"We need to solve this," Fujii said.

"People have been concentrating on the dollar value of the fire. I think what we failed to mention so far is the impact it has on the students of this school. It's going to affect students for generations," Fujii said.

Hawai'i's schools are particularly vulnerable to anyone plotting damage, from arsonists to vandals, schools officials said. In the past two years alone, schools have sustained more than $10 million in damage from fires, some of them the result of arson.

Part of that vulnerability includes the fact that many are older wooden buildings that may date to plantation days. Other reasons include the accessibility of Hawai'i's schools, their open-to-the-trade-winds architectural style, their lack of perimeter fences and the fact they're often located off the beaten track and in the middle of communities where there's generally no constant surveillance.

"The Kalaheo School fire (on Kaua'i) was in an old wooden structure," said Glenn Tatsuno, who heads the Safety and Security Services section of the state Department of Education. "The Pahoa High and Intermediate fire (on the Big Island) was an old wooden building. The Waiakea fire was a cement building, but they broke into the room and then set the fire and it got into the roof and the roof is partially wooden."

STEPPING UP SECURITY

Tatsuno said more security on school campuses "could serve as a deterrent."

"The need for security in our schools is definitely there, but it does cost money," he said.

"One thing we're looking at is the installation of security cameras. All schools would benefit from having them put in."

But Tatsuno added that there's no way he can find the extra money or mandate that schools add security cameras.

A single security system with four or five cameras and recording capability could cost about $15,000, he said, and even then such a system would not necessarily cover every spot on a campus.

"There are still a lot of blind spots on our campuses," he said.

And security responsibilities are starting to move to the schools, Tatsuno said.

'OWNING' OUR SCHOOLS

Approximately $7.3 million that had been allocated to Tatsuno's office for school security personnel will be part of the weights assigned to schools according to need. In the school year that begins next month, that money will be given to schools to provide their own security, he said.

Waiakea principal Patricia Nekoba feels the style of Hawai'i's public school campuses makes them especially vulnerable. On April 11, an arson fire did $1.5 million in damage to the school.

"The schools are wide open," she said. "They're designed to take in the natural ventilation system, so most of our schools are built for open-air access. They're not like Mainland schools. You can drive right up."

Nekoba has hired an extra security guard for nighttime at her school, and said most schools would welcome all-night security.

"There was a point that we had security lights on all the schools, then with the need to save electricity most of us turned off the lights," she said.

Almost anything that can be done to provide more security would help, said Nekoba, "whether it's more roving patrols, security cameras, or in some cases having people on the campus during nonschool hours."

"But again, it's a costly proposition," she said.

She suggested that communities accept some of the responsibility for keeping their schools safe, including making the school in their area a regular part of a Neighborhood Watch patrol.

"It's about 'owning' the school in your community," she said. "Be aware of who is going in and out. People shouldn't be loitering on a school campus. People should call the police if they see anything."

MONEY NEEDED

The central DOE office has provided about $650,000 for roving security guards that cover four to six schools every night in many districts. The total number of schools covered is about 72, and the guards visit about twice a night, checking every door on campus.

But it has been at least a decade since the Legislature provided money for night security guards, and the amount hasn't been increased since the 1990s.

"There have been attempts to go after money from time to time, but we haven't been successful," said Tatsuno.

Richard Soo, on contract with the DOE to provide fire safety training to school personnel, said public schools face a double-edged sword.

"We want to be accessible to the community," said Soo, a retired Honolulu fire captain. "That means the perimeter fences aren't necessarily fully gated, making the perimeter accessible.

"Unfortunately, when you're looking at a suspected arsonist or just a vandal, it makes it very inviting to target a school."

University Lab School became a DOE charter school in 2001. It has 420 students in kindergarten through 12th grade. In the past, the Lab School has reported receiving 1,200 applications for every 60 slots.

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com and Beverly Creamer at bcreamer@honoluluadvertiser.com.