Officials find mold at Oradell school

December 1, 2005

Thursday, December 1, 2005

By PAUL H. JOHNSON

STAFF WRITER

Hackensack,NJ

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ORADELL - School officials said that they discovered non-toxic mold

in the crawl space of Oradell Elementary School and will work over

Christmas break to remove it.

The mold, which is allergenic but not toxic, was discovered as the

school district prepared to begin a $10 million renovation and

expansion project that would add classrooms to the 75-year-old

building.

School Superintendent Mohre said tests of air quality found

that the mold has not seeped into the elementary school itself.

" We have satisfactory air quality, " Mohre said.

He said the mold could cause an allergic reaction in anyone who

comes into contact with it. Since the crawl space is near a hallway

near the school district's art and music rooms, the district has

closed those rooms, he said, even though there was no danger to

students.

" We want to make sure that we are preserving and maintaining a

healthy school environment, " Mohre said.

He said the work to remove the mold will take place when the school

is closed for a week for Christmas. The district is soliciting bids

for the work, which is expected to take seven days to complete.

Mohre said the district sent letters to parents and discussed the

situation with the school's faculty. The elementary school houses

about 750 students.

The discovery came as construction was set to begin in January on a

renovation project approved by voters in 2004.

The project includes plans for the construction of three

kindergarten rooms and a pre-kindergarten room, a music room, and a

gymnasium.

The existing gymnasium would be transformed into a new media center,

and the existing media center would be split into three classrooms.

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