A fire started at the bus barn Thursday after an older model bus had an electrical issue in its engine.  

Choir director Doris Prater first saw the fire after being informed of it by Maize alumna Karlie Will, who was visiting the school with her choir from Kansas Wesleyan University. Prater said she originally thought it may have just been a school van and that she was surprised when she saw the fire at the bus barn.

“I thought maybe they just saw something,” Prater said. “So I went out there and then I saw literally a bus over there that had flames out of the hood of it, and I go ‘Oh my gosh! You’re not kidding!’”

Prater was the first to inform a custodian and the office about the fire. The office then called emergency services.

“Obviously your concern is that there were buses all around it,¨ Prater said. “The whole thing could go up, and we’ve got big troubles.”

District Director of Communications Lori O’Toole Buselt said it is unknown when the fire had started, though the bus had been parked at the bus barn since 9 a.m.. She said the damages are currently being assessed by an insurance company, but the bus appears to be inoperable.

“There were no injuries,” Buselt said. “We’re just working to determine how much damage was caused to the bus.”