Parents lash out at school board over mould

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Parents lash out at school board over mould

Paradise Elementary remains closed as crews tackle walls, ceilings

Last Updated: Wednesday, November 15, 2006 | 9:54 AM NT

CBC News Newfoundland & Labrador - St. 's,Newfoundland,Canada

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/newfoundland-

labrador/story/2006/11/15/mould-meeting.html

Furious and frustrated parents squared off against the leadership of

a school board Tuesday night over a mould problem that has closed a

school for the second time in two years.

Paradise Elementary, a school with 600 students, will be closed for

at least the rest of the week while crews try to remove mould that

parents say is putting their children's health at risk. The school

is in the suburban town of Paradise, just outside St. 's.

Paradise Elementary will remain closed this week while crews tackle

mould in walls and ceilings.

Nearly 300 people crowded into the school's gym Tuesday night to

demand answers from Eastern School District education director Darin

King.

At several points, emotions boiled over as parents expressed their

frustrations, with some saying that an earlier mould problem was

never properly addressed.

" Can you smell the mould? " father Todd O'Neill asked King, who

replied that he was not qualified to answer the question.

" You got a nose, don't you? " said O'Neill.

" My child is allergic to mould. What are you people doing — and have

been doing in the past — to protect my child? " said parent

Arnes.

Some parents pinched their noses as they toured through the school,

where crews have been tearing open walls and have removed ceiling

tiles.

Crews have also torn out lockers, and are installing a new

ventilation system and windows.

Before the meeting, parent Kim Pinsent told CBC News that she and

other parents have linked mould to health problems. Her daughter has

been having persistent nosebleeds.

" We were waiting to pick her up and my husband got called down to

the classroom, and when he went down, she was over the sink and

bleeding profusely into the sink, " she said.

Several teachers who attended the meeting refused to comment to CBC

on their working conditions.

The Eastern School District will decide by Monday whether they will

reopen the school, or whether students will have to study elsewhere

while remediation continues.

" We're very confident that the actions we're taking will remediate

the situation and solve the problem that's existed there, " King said

in an interview before the meeting.

Meanwhile, parents who later held their own meeting say they are

considering staging a protest at Confederation Building before then

to press their concerns to politicians.