Tantallon Junior Elementary School delays opening

UPPER TANTALLON – Students at Tantallon Junior Elementary School are getting an extended summer vacation due to surface mould found in the building.

Classes were expected to start this Thursday at the Upper Tantallon School, but due to mould, classes have been put over until Tuesday, September 8.

Doug Hadley, spokesperson with the Halifax Regional School Board, said a company had been cleaning up the school since the mould was discovered last week, and by the end day Tuesday it was believed the school would be ready for students on Thursday.

However, more mould was discovered on the second floor since then and will require additional time to remove.

“It really involves in many cases replacing ceiling tiles, there’s been some books and things like that are going have to be replaced,” Hadley said.

“In some cases, you’re using a detergent to wipe down some metal or some of the pipes that might be above the ceiling, but it’s not something that’s going to take extensive remediation … it’s just taken a few days to get cleaned up.”

Hadley said surface mould was actually found in four or five schools within HRSB, but TJES was the most extensive.

The mould in all cases is believed to have been caused by the high humidity and lack of air movement in the schools over the past few weeks.

“Being on the ground floor, being on a concrete slab, there would be moisture that comes in to the building from the ground, the air exchange units would have been off with all the windows closed, so it would be pretty stale air,” Hadley said.

“So all of those factors combine to create a perfect environment for mould growth.”

Hadley notes Tantallon Senior Elementary School will open on Thursday as planned.

Earlier this week, the school board announced the opening of Brookside Junior High School would also be delayed until after the long weekend due to mould issues.

Parents are asked to check the school’s website for the latest information.