Politics & Government

UPDATED: Swampscott Parents Worry About Air at Hadley School

Parents want air testing results posted once the clean-up of the fire debris pile starts.

At Wednesday’s School Committee meeting, parents Richard Kraft and Emily Westhoven asked what air quality tests will be done at Hadley School when crews start to remove the fire debris. 

They worry about students breathing hazardous air once the debris pile is disturbed.

On March 1-2, at the corner of Humphrey and Redington streets.

Find out what's happening in Swampscottwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

It had stood right next to Hadley.

released an updated statement Thursday morning on the clean-up:  

Find out what's happening in Swampscottwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"At the present time, the fire site and the clean-up is between the landowner and the contractor.  The town is working closely with both of them as well as the DEP. When the school system has a definitive DEP statement in writing concerning process for removal, it will be posted on the schools' website," Celli said.

At Wednesday's meeting the superintendent asked those with questions about the fire to direct them to the town administrator or town fire chief.

Joe Ferson, a spokesman with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, said in an interview on Wednesday that the fire debris pile tested positive for the presence of asbestos.

He does not know how much asbestos is in the debris pile, he said.

The owner of the building is responsible for the site clean-up and must have an asbestos consultant and a contractor submit a site clean-up plan to the DEP before the debris can be removed, he said.

Ferson expected that the plan would be filed soon, perhaps as soon that very day, Wednesday.

Once the clean-up starts, air quality must be tested at the fire site, including the periphery, he said.

That testing is required as part of the clean-up plan. Testing will be arranged by the contractor and will be monitored by the DEP, he said.

Parents asked that the test results be posted on the school website.

Also on Wednesday, audience members asked what cleaning and air quality tests were done at the before it reopened on Friday, March 4.

The K-4 Hadley School was closed March 2-3. The school had no electrical power on March 2.

Superintendent Lynne Celli called off school Thursday, March 3, over concerns about poor air quality after she walked through the building.

School reopened on Friday, after Marblehead Health Director Wayne Attridge — standing in for Swampscott’s health director, who was away  — inspected the school and deemed it safe, the superintendent said.

Attridge visually inspected the school, said Garrett Baker, Swampscott’s director of facilities.

Baker said its floor vacuumed and its ventilation filters changed on Thursday, March 3.


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