Construction sparks small fire at CdM

Construction at Corona del Mar High School accidentally sparked a small dumpster fire shortly before the school’s graduation Thursday, according to a fire official.

Friends and family arriving for the ceremony may have noticed a black plume rising from the rear of the school’s tennis courts and pool area around 1:30 p.m.

“It put up a pretty good column of smoke,” Newport Beach Battalion Chief Todd Knipp said.

The Newport Beach Fire Department responded, but construction crews managed to douse the blaze before engines arrived.

Firefighters finished their work just as graduation attendees started filling the stands, according to Knipp.

“It was all knocked down and overhauled before the ceremony started,” he said.

— Jeremiah Dobruck

Twitter: @jeremiahdobruck