He said teachers and students extinguished a fire that started in bushes near the classrooms on Thursday afternoon.

On Saturday afternoon a pile of books was set alight and the fire threatened to spread to the school buildings, he said.

"I was on duty on Saturday and saw smoke coming from a room. When I rushed to see what was happening, I saw the fire spreading from a pile of books to the wooden floor," schoolteacher Klaisamorn Hinkla said.

The teacher and a cleaner put the fire out.

Police have been informed about the incidents.

Ubon Ratchathani Governor Suthee Makboon yesterday inspected Ban Na Meun School.

Thanetpon believed arsonists were behind the fires.

Electrical wiring has recently been checked and is in "good condition", he said, ruling out a short-circuit.

He added that teachers and local residents had no personal problems.

A source at Rai No Tambon Administrative Organisation said Thanetpon's younger brother was a kamnan and would run for Parliament in the next general election.

"This could be a reason the school was targeted," the source said.

Political "undercurrents" supporting the ousted Thaksin Shinawatra administration continue to take a share of the flak whenever there is a school fire in the North and Northeast.

Provincial Police Region 3 commissioner Lt-General Sathaporn Laothong, however, insists evidence suggests arson is a likely cause in just two of 16 school fires in his area.

"We have concluded that in eight cases electrical short circuits or cigarettes caused the fires," he said this week.

He added that electrical faults and discarded cigarettes were common causes of fire.

"The school fires became big news only after the coup," he said.

Sathaporn conceded arsonists could be behind the Ban Sakadnak Wittaya School in Nakhon Ratchasima and Nabodhi Community School in Buri Ram.

"We expect to arrest suspects soon," he said.

However, he said police needed time to resolve the cases because most of the evidence was destroyed by the fires.

"Police have had to gather circumstantial evidence," he added.

In Buri Ram, school directors have received more than 10 circulars since the coup calling for vigilance.

"We examine electric wiring and appliances at our schools regularly to prevent short circuits. We check people going in and out," Buri Ram's Nang Rong School director Damrong Kornkeskamon said.

"For security, we have deployed more guards at night," Damrong said.

The Interior Ministry has threatened to sack directors who fail to protect schools from arson. Damrong said directors deserved dismissal if they did not implement preventive measures.

"But if we do our best to protect schools it's a different story," he said.

In Nakhon Ratchasima, Ruang Si Wittaya School director Siri-orn Kanakool said guards and teachers were patrolling the school at night. She said police checked the school every hour.

"We hope our school is safe," she said.

In Kamphaeng Phet, Pacha Supanakorn of Provincial Educational Service Area 1 office said school fires had cost more than Bt3.4 million.

"Reconstruction is nearly complete," he said. He suspects arson in at least five cases.

Mayuree  Sukyingcharoenwong

The Nation