Suspected electrical fire at Gingin District High School forces students to evacuate

One of three classrooms destroyed in today's blaze. (ABC Midwest Wheatbelt: Sam McManus)

Up to 180 students have been evacuated from Gingin District High School in Western Australia's Wheatbelt region due to a fire which has gutted three classrooms. 

Twenty Department of Fire and Emergency Services units have been at the scene as well as police and a shire environmental health officer.

The fire was first reported shortly after midday.

Shire of Gingin CEO Aaron Cook said he believed it was sparked after water seeped into an electrical system. 

"We are advised that the preliminary assessment is that it is water entering into the roof space and there has been an electrical short or an electrical fault [that] has been created from that," he said.

Firefighters battle the blaze. (Supplied: Aaron Cook)

"The portion that had the fire is one of the very old portions of the Gingin District High School that wasn't affected by the fire some 18 months [or] two years ago.

"One of the new portions of the school just next to it has also been affected by the fire but to what extent I'm unsure at this stage."

A full assessment of the damage is still underway. (ABC Midwest Wheatbelt: Sam McManus)

A previous blaze tore through an older section of the school in 2019, impacting two classrooms and causing $2.5 million damage.

Mr Cook said it was too early to estimate damages from the today's fire but said it "won't be cheap".

Asbestos a possibility

He said asbestos was a concern, particularly for the older section of the building.

"As a precaution our environmental health officer has gone to site to go and inspect and have a look through with the DFES representatives ... to make sure everyone is safe and it's all contained," he said.

Smoke rises up from Gingin District High School. (Supplied: Aaron Cook)

"After they had the last fire, I'm unsure if they went through those buildings and actually removed all the asbestos."

DFES Superintendent Andy Hinton said investigations were continuing into the official cause.

"It is expected Gingin High School will be closed tomorrow and there will be decisions made on how long that closure lasts through tomorrow," he said.

Smoke billowing from a building at the school. (Supplied: Martin Aldridge)

"We have the fire and investigation unit from DFES on site right now so [the cause of the fire] is still being ascertained.

"However the fire commenced during a period of intense weather here with lightning and storm, so we believe it is electrical related.

"Whether it was a lightning strike or electrical failure, we are unsure."