By Daniel Massey
PS 65 children kept home by parents who feared the Ozone Park school was making them sick began returning to classes last week after city officials announced the building had tested negative for cancer-causing contaminants, Board of Education officials said.
Attendance rose from 73 percent May 16 to just above 86 percent last Thursday, the latest figures available, said Board of Ed spokesman Kevin Ortiz.
Normal attendance for the school is around 92 percent, he said, a figure Board of Ed officials believed would be reached this week after the Memorial Day holiday.
News reports that carbon dioxide levels in the air at the school were too high and the groundwater beneath the building was contaminated by the cancer-causing agent trichloroethylene worked parents into a frenzy, leading some to keep their children out of school.
As of last Thursday, eight parents had asked District 27 officials to transfer their children out of PS 65, Ortiz said.
“The way it’s working is we are offering variances to parents if they request them,” he said. “We’re not saying you can go anywhere. We’re placing them in other schools and parents have the option to accept.”
Increasing numbers of parents began reporting that their children were suffering from dizziness, headaches, sore throats and rashes shortly after the news reports surfaced. Officials from the city Department of Health said a preliminary investigation showed there was nothing in school medical records that should have raised alarm.
The results of more nuanced tests at the 103-22 99th St. school, including those for PCB, were expected this week, officials said. A further round of testing was scheduled for this week, Ortiz said.
Parents were told by city and state officials at a May 21 meeting that traces of TCE in the air were below detection levels and sampling for other harmful organic substances and asbestos also were negative.
“The main goal of the meeting was to give accurate information and then parents can make a decision on what’s best for their kids based on accurate information,” Ortiz said.
State Department of Environmental Conservation scientists said they found TCE in the groundwater 35 feet below ground when the school was being built on the site of a former airplane parts factory. But they said the school is safe because the contaminant is far below the ground and has no way to reach the air.
“It has calmed down a lot,” Parent Association President Pattie Musalin said of the mood since the meeting. “But we’re still waiting on results.”
Some parents planned to conduct their own testing. They retained Manhattan attorney Peter Ronai, who said he represented 20 to 25 PS 65 parents.
Ronai, who will be paid one-third of any money the parents are awarded, alleged the Board of Ed had reneged on a promise made at the meeting to allow him to conduct his own tests. On Tuesday, a handful of parents protested outside the school, supporting Ronai’s claim.
But Ortiz said Ronai and the parents were free to test after a protocol could be agreed upon. He said the Board of Ed had tried to reach Ronai, but the lawyer had not returned their phone calls.
“It was decided that there would be a meeting with these folks to determine the best way to come up with proper protocol,” Ortiz said. “We made it perfectly clear to them that they just can’t go in and send their people in there. We need to know who they are and what exactly they plan on doing.”
Meanwhile, doctors from the Department of Health continued to scour student medical charts and to review the school nurse’s log book for any signs the school itself could be causing children to get sick, said spokesman Greg Butler.
“Thus far the Health Department has not identified any unusual trends or patterns that would indicate the school is a source of illness,” he said. “We are continuing with the review process … and will continue to keep parents up to date regarding any new finding about PS 65.”
If test results are ready, officials from the Board of Ed and Department of Health will address another parent meeting June 4.
Reach reporter Daniel Massey by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 156.
