East Bay Elementary School Burglarized Twice In Recent Weeks
HAYWARD (KPIX 5) -- Colonial Acres Elementary School in Hayward has been burglarized twice in the past few weeks. The principal said the thieves used a basic kitchen utensil in one of the break-ins.
School doesn't begin until next Monday, but Principal Linda Santillan said she learned a tough lesson back in July. "It turned out that there were 14 classrooms at the school that could be opened with just a kitchen knife," she said.
It wasn't hard for burglars to break into the campus storage room, making off with computers, overhead projectors and much of the next year's school supplies
"A shelf of pencils, children's scissors, glue sticks, classroom supplies," Santillan recalled.
Only a few pencils are left and all the binder paper is gone.
The locks have since been strengthened but then came insult to injury. Last Tuesday night, a thief was able to cut the lock off some outdoor storage containers and stole the school's brand new playground equipment.
"Basketballs, footballs, tennis racquets, tennis balls, baseball bats," Santillan said.
All that's left is the old broken stuff.
The principal is asking the public for donations to replace the stolen items. But no matter what happens, she tells her staff this is just a setback.
"My standard line is: The teachers in Afghanistan are drawing pictures in the dirt with sticks. You can teach your class," Santillan said.