Rags soaked in cleaning products spontaneously combusted, accidentally causing the fire that heavily damaged Lincoln Avenue Elementary School on June 30, Milwaukee Fire Chief Aaron Lipski said.
Milwaukee Public Schools custodial staff had been cleaning and waxing floors with rags soaked in cleaning or waxing solvents, Lipski said at a news conference Aug. 10. The staff disposed of the towels in plastic trash cans, which caused the fire.
The fire started in the second-floor hallway in the northeast corner of the building, destroying large portions of Lincoln Avenue School, 1817 W. Lincoln Ave, just two weeks after the 2025-26 school year concluded. MPS Superintendent Brenda Cassellius said the 109-year-old building was declared a total loss, and the district is seeking contractors to demolish the facility.
Video evidence from the inside of school proved invaluable in the investigation, Lipski said.
He said the video showed custodial staff emptying out classrooms and moving furniture into hallways to prepare for the upcoming school year. The employees disposed of rags soaked with cleaning or waxing liquids into a garbage can.
As staff piled more rags on top, the temperature inside the trash can rose, causing the materials to spontaneously combust. Video showed a wisp of smoke coming from the top of a trash can about 30 minutes before the fire department began receiving emergency calls around 3 a.m., Lipski said.
The flames on the second floor spread to items stored in the hallways and blew out the building’s glass window panes, allowing the fire to rapidly advance to other areas of the building. Doors and windows left open by staff to air out cleaning fumes also contributed to the fire’s spread, as well as hot and humid weather conditions.
“We find that nobody acted with intent or purpose to cause this fire to occur,” Lipski said. “We have absolutely no evidence to suggest this was an arson fire. Sadly, as is often the case, there was human error involved.”
Lincoln Avenue students will attend school inside Pulaski High School next school year. Pulaski High School, 2500 W. Oklahoma Ave., is less than two miles from the elementary school on Milwaukee’s south side. About 480 students in 3-year-old kindergarten to fifth grade attended Lincoln Avenue for the 2025-26 school year, according to MPS officials.
This story will be updated.
Kayla Huynh covers K-12 education, teachers and solutions for the Journal Sentinel. Contact: khuynh@gannett.com. Follow her on X: @_kaylahuynh.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Solvent-soaked rags caused Lincoln Avenue School fire, officials say
Reporting by Kayla Huynh, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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By Kayla Huynh, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
