Mold delays first day of school in Somers Point

Last Updated on Friday, September 07, 2012 10:28 am Written by SHAUN SMITH Tuesday, September 04, 2012 01:42 pm

SOMERS POINT – The discovery of mold at Jordan Road School will delay the first day for students until at least Monday, Sept. 10.

Superintendent Jeff Miller said he made the decision Tuesday, Sept. 4, just one day prior to the scheduled first day of school.

On Tuesday, Miller said the mold was first discovered Friday, Aug. 31 by a custodian cleaning the media center in the primary wing of Jordan Road School as the district prepared for its opening day Wednesday.

The school’s environmental consultant Coastal Environmental of Hammonton was notified on Friday, he said.

“They determined they could isolate that area and clean it and not affect the opening of school,” Miller said Sept. 4.

He said All Risk, the company hired to perform the mold remediation, found evidence of mold in other classrooms near the media center when work began on Tuesday.

“So as a precautionary measure we met and determined that we were going to close all the schools to make sure we didn’t have a problem in any of the schools,” Miller said.

He said the reason for mold in the media center was an, “unusually high degree of humidity in that area.”

Miller stated procedurally the school will perform a follow-up air quality test once the mold has been removed.

He said a phone call went to parents at 1 p.m. and again at 6 p.m. on Tuesday and a letter was posted on the school’s website. He said the district’s before and after care programs will not start until the first day of school.

In the meantime, the district will keep the lines of communication open with parents through those mediums and on Facebook.

Miller suggested that the three days of school that will be missed this week be added to the end of the school calendar. He said that could change if the remediation takes longer than expected.

“We regret not being able to start the school year on time and certainly the inconvenience this is causing everyone, but we want to make sure the schools are safe and there are no health issues in the school; that’s most important,” Miller said.