Teacher Disputes Claim That Snake Caused Classroom Fire

The snake, her owner says, is being smeared. Virginia science teacher Brittany Jacobs is publicly challenging fire officials' claim that her 8-foot-long classroom python, Nanner, helped touch off a blaze on Thursday at Forest Middle School by knocking over a heat fixture, reports the Guardian. Jacobs says her slithery reptile was actually trying to escape the fire that killed a tortoise and burned so intensely it warped metal on a nearby tank.

Jacobs points to intact light fixtures near the snake's enclosure, surveillance video showing flames visible for 20 minutes before the python appears in the hallway, and soot marks on Nanner's face that she says match the snake's original enclosure—suggesting Nanner was still in the enclosure when the fire started. The fire caused damage to several classrooms, though classes were set to resume as scheduled on Wednesday. The fire marshal, meanwhile, maintains that the snake "contributed" to the fire but without intent or "maliciousness," per WDBJ. A GoFundMe has been set up for Jacobs, who has removed all of the animals in her classroom and is now caring for them at home.