Nevils Elementary School was evacuated for about 30 minutes Tuesday after a fire alarm on campus sounded at approximately 1:10 p.m.

No one was injured, and the building was not damaged. First responders did not find smoke or fire when they arrived at the scene.

Johnson Control, the school's alarm company, immediately contacted Principal Julie Blackmar when the alarm sounded. Blackmar instructed Johnson Control to dispatch the fire department, and then she called for the evacuation of the building, according to the school's safety plan procedures.

Bulloch County Volunteer Firefighter Ricky Hutchinson was the first on the scene. Hutchinson checked the kitchen area, including a nearby custodial closet, the areas from which the alarm was emitting, and found no smoke or fire.

Earlier in the day a washer and dryer had been removed from the custodial closet in the kitchen. School food service personnel had used hot water to wash the closet when the alarm sounded. According to Hutchinson, steam from the hot water and lint may have led to the alarm being triggered.

Hutchinson gave Blackmar the "all clear" at approximately 1:45 p.m., and all personnel and students returned to the building.

"All faculty, staff, and students did a tremendous job evacuating quickly and quietly," Blackmar said.

Fire evacuations are practiced throughout the year at all of Bulloch County Schools' campuses. The state requires schools to have two such drills within the first 10 days of the academic year.