Whitehall Elementary to open September 8; high school closed after storm damage
WHITEHALL, N.Y. (NEWS10) – The superintendent of the Whitehall Central School District, Patrick Dee, provided an update Thursday on the damage to schools following severe weather. He says they expect to open the Elementary school to in-person learning on the planned start date of September 8. He said the Jr./Sr. High School will need a lot more work and will not open for in-person education on September 8.
All students in grades 7 to 12 will be engaging in remote learning beginning on September 8 until the district can bring students back into a safe and clean environment. Dee’s goal is to have students back in the High School by the second marking period. The superintendent says if they can bring students back safely before then, they will.
Damage Report:
Elementary School:
- Some skylights were pulled from the roof due to the high winds, allowing water to enter directly into the gymnasium
- The majority of the water damage was relegated to the gymnasium, the cafeteria and the hallway outside of the gymnasium and cafeteria
- Ceiling tiles that were damaged are being replaced
- The Gym floor will be addressed
- Most water that entered the building stayed on the gym floor and tiled spaces
- Mitigation staff is on-site and drying the carpet that got damp in one cluster as well as some hallway carpeting
- The majority of our elementary classrooms were not impacted by flood water
Jr./Sr. High School:
- 100% of the school (Classrooms, offices and common spaces) have been impacted by standing water
- The auditorium had ankle-deep water
- The boiler room had at least 8” of water
- The pool filtration room had at least 5’ of water (pumped out by Poultney VFD)
- The pool has been drained (Whitehall VFD & Washington Co. Emergency Services)
- Mitigation experts are on site, all standing water has been removed
- All carpeted areas in the building have been stripped of carpeting
- Drying equipment is in place throughout the building
- Mitigation protocols for remediation to ensure no water is remaining inside wall cavities and protect against mold growth are being formulated
- The water damage and remediation to the building has significantly impacted the progress of the building project
Building administrators will be in touch with families to coordinate the details involving returning to school at the Elementary School and how remote instruction will work at the High School. Distribution dates/times and location for Chromebooks will be shared as well.