POST FALLS — Chalk it

up as a smoke day at Post Falls High. 

A dryer fire in the

area of The Arena this morning caused smoke to spread throughout

the building just before first period and forced school to be

cancelled for the day.

School officials said

they believe classes will resume on Wednesday.

Jim Lyon, Kootenai

County Fire and Rescue spokesman, said the fire was contained to

the laundry room and mostly to the dryer itself. A wall was

damaged.

A sprinker behind the

dryer went off and that, coupled with it being a concrete and metal

room, prevented the fire from spreading.

Students were

directed to the parking lots of Prairie View Elementary and Real

Life Ministries during the evacuation so they could call parents

for rides home or make other connections.

Lyon said water began

to spread onto the Arena floor but was quickly diverted to a shower

area, preventing damage.

Predictably, students

didn't mind being sent home for the day.

"This never happens;

it's actually pretty cool," junior Wayne Hunt said of the fire

evacuation. "A lot of people thought it was a fire drill at first.

Then you could smell the smoke."