SOUTHLAND : Simi School Warehouse Burns

SIMI VALLEY — A school district warehouse caught fire and burned to the ground early today, destroying millions of dollars in books and other supplies, including student records, authorities said.

The blaze broke out in the 30,000-square-foot warehouse about 4 a.m. and was declared a third-alarm fire immediately after firefighters arrived, said Alison Schember, a Ventura County Fire Department dispatcher. Officials estimated the loss at more than $2 million. The cause was under investigation.

Eva Sweet, a spokeswoman for the Simi Valley Unified School District, said the warehouse was the only storage facility for the 18,300-student district, the largest in Ventura County. Lost were textbooks, paper supplies and microfilms of past student records.