Video - NJ school moves classes outside due to mold

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NJ school moves classes outside due to mold

7Online.com - New York,NY

Eyewitness News

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=local & id=5389274

(South Orange - WABC, June 12, 2007) - A New Jersey school is

dealing with a toxic problem Tuesday.

The school has areas of mold that need to be cleaned up, and

teachers are taking drastic measures to bring attention to the

problem.

The school is located in South Orange. New Jersey reporter Toni

Yates has the story.

School officials decided to take classes outside Tuesday, because

they say being outdoors is a lot safer than being inside South

Orange Middle School.

All of the classes were on the lawn today because many of the

classrooms are not in good enough condition.

Physical education teacher Joanna sent pictures to Eyewitness

News that show growing ceiling stains from old leaks, overloaded

chemical storage areas and expired fire extinguishers. calls

the conditions deplorable.

" We have a mold problem that is so horrid that the health of

students is being compromised, " she said.

Teachers say it has been a problem at the school for a long time and

is not conducive to teaching.

" Sitting in classrooms filled with mold is difficult, and they have

to keep relocating the classrooms, " language arts teacher Fine

said. " I think it puts a strain on nerves. "

, who is head of the teacher's union, says they and students

have complained of headaches and breathing problems. She says she's

sure the problems inside are the common denominator.

" Allergies, coughs, we had a parent talk at a board meeting the

other night that had a child who was recently diagnosed with Bells

Palsy, " she said.

Principal Kirk says steps will be taken immediately after

school Tuesday to get the building back to where the kids can be

inside.

" We're going to take some corrections in a few of the classrooms so

that we can seal some of the holes that we opened up in the building

trying to track down where the leaks are coming from, " he said.

That will be just a stopgap measure. says more will be done

after the school year ends, which is set for June 21. He says

permanent fixes will be made over the summer break.

The school district issued the following statement:

The Board of Education and the administration are very concerned

about the health and safety of the students and staff in this

district. In April, the Essex Regional Health Commission was called

by the district to test the air quality at South Orange Middle

School following complaints by some staff and parents. The results

showed no volatile organic compounds above safe levels usually found

outdoors. However, in view of an inconsistent report from a Florida

company subsequently engaged by teachers to test for mold in the

school, the District hired a firm from the New Jersey Department of

Health and Senior Services' recommended list to do additional

testing. That company, AHERA, did a series of tests that both

replicated those done in the teachers' report and expanded the

investigation by focusing on live spores.

The district then called the New Jersey State Public Employee

Occupational Safety and Health Program (PEOSH) to evaluate the

reports. We are awaiting a response from PEOSH and, should this

agency recommend further action or find that there are any safety or

health concerns, we will act immediately and aggressively.

Once school is out, the building and grounds department will address

problems with leaks from the roof and, as part of the district's

overall plan, there will be a thorough cleaning and sanitizing of

the building.