The fire-damaged bleachers overlooking the Sunrise Mountain High School football field appear as rough as they did the day they burned.
Except that day was six months ago, and the Miners’ varsity team has their home opener tonight against Del Sol. And it’s no ordinary game for the northeast Las Vegas school.
“This Friday is our homecoming game, so it’s going to be interesting,” Principal AJ Adams said.
The stands caught on fire after school Feb. 9. Video clips on social media show puffy dark smoke blanketing the home side bleachers, although firefighters kept the blaze contained to the northernmost quarter of the aluminum benches.
An investigation into the fire’s cause has not been resolved, Adams said.
The Clark County School District has not yet demolished, repaired or replaced the charred stands at the far northeast-side school, and it’s unclear when it will.
Chain link panels and a fluttering strip of yellow caution tape block access to the most obviously damaged portion, but the jagged, blackened crater is uncovered.
It is plainly visible from the street and looms over the school’s football players during their daily practice.
The district said in a statement this week that workers installed temporary fencing around the burnt area, and “since the incident, CCSD has worked with insurance providers to obtain the necessary reports including an engineering assessment and inspection by the original manufacturer. After determining the appropriate repairs for the damaged section of bleachers, the district is moving forward with the process to have a contractor perform the work needed to repair/rebuild.”
The district did not further elaborate and the cost is unknown.
As of this week, Adams wasn’t sure which, if any, parts of the unburnt sections were safe to sit on. He said game day staff, in addition to their usual game night safety monitoring, will actively keep spectators away from the most damaged section.
The principal wishes the delays wouldn’t have extended into the season.
He knew the School District had to work with its insurance carrier but thought that work would be done by the summer. After inquiring with the district before school resumed this month, he said he learned about some issues with getting replacement parts.
The stands had been inspected by engineers but will need to be inspected again, he said. The repairs are being handled by central administration.
The hope is the bleacher situation doesn’t take away from what could be a successful season for the team. The Miners beat Valley 35-0 on the road last week to open the season, as Auhsoj Cunningham and Demarion Carter both ran for more than 150 yards and combined for three touchdowns.
It was the school’s first win since 2019 — the 2020 season was shelved because of the pandemic, and Sunrise Mountain posted an 0-7 record in 2021.
After the game, coach Chris Sawyers told the Sun, “A lot of guys stepped up big time. We did some good things. Am I satisfied? No. ... Getting the win was a good start.”
The Sun’s Danny Webster contributed to this story.