Recurring mould shuts down elementary school

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Recurring mould shuts down elementary school

Last Updated: Friday, November 10, 2006 | 12:11 PM NT

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

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

labrador/story/2006/11/10/mould-school.html

A school outside St. 's closed Friday as authorities scrambled

to deal with mould.

Paradise Elementary School will be cleaned during the Remembrance

Day long weekend, following the discovery of mould behind school

lockers.

The school was closed only last year for extensive renovations

because of mould.

Pinsent, whose six-year-old daughter attends the school in

Paradise, a suburb outside St. 's, blames mould for his

daughter's nosebleeds and headaches.

" It's staggering and overwhelming, the amount of children in that

school that are sick [with] asthmatic-type symptoms, respiratory

illnesses, rashes, lethargy … people being tired in class, inability

to concentrate, all these things, and a host more, " Pinsent told CBC

News Friday.

Darin King, the director of education for the Eastern School

District, said renovations last year were successful, and that he

was not aware of any health problems among students at the school.

King said, however, that student safety is the board's chief concern

and he will not reopen the school on Tuesday if it is not ready.

" Our objective is to clean the school and make sure that it's mould-

free for Tuesday, " King said Friday.

" Clearly, the reopening hinges on our ability to succeed in that in

the next three or four days. "

Pinsent said some parents will not let their children return to

school if the mould is not removed.