School Still Recovering After Arson, Suspect Still at Large

It took a team of nearly 150 county employees to clean up Fairington Elementary School in Lithonia after a fire started in one of the classrooms.

While students have returned to the building and resumed classes, the school is still recovering from the aftermath, and police continue to look for a suspect whom they believe started the fire.

Fairington has received numerous donations from organizations throughout DeKalb County, according to The Champion, but administrators are still trying to figure out what other supplies need to be replaced.

“We were grateful for all the people that donated to our school,” Principal Jeffery Jenkins told the newspaper. “We’re going through items and finding out what is still missing and what we need to replace, but then we’ll come up with a list of items that each teacher needs to replace and replace them.”

Fire broke out in the elementary school on Jan. 17. DeKalb Schools officials released surveillance footage of a man whom they suspect is the arsonist, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The man was seen staring at a portable classroom with his hands in his pocket.

Investigators are offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

-- Photo screenshot from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.