Springdale Schools Closed By Leaking Propane Pipe

Schoolchildren in Springdale get a mini-vacation today while officials at the Mary Walker School District make sure that propane from a leaky underground pipe isn’t filtering into classrooms.

Officials sent the 600 students home about noon Tuesday after a construction worker using a torch ignited the gas. Workers hadn’t realized the pipe, which had been uncovered and reburied weeks ago, was leaking, said school superintendent Mike Sowder.

The small fire was quickly extinguished and the propane shut off.

“There was never any gas inside the building,” Sowder said Tuesday night. “Just as a precaution, we’ll keep the kids home tomorrow” as each classroom is checked.

The leak was just outside Springdale Elementary School, which is being remodeled and expanded. The district’s junior high and high school are at the same site, so all grades were evacuated.

The leaky pipe, which was going to be rerouted anyway, will not be repaired or dug up, said Sowder. It provided gas for a shop furnace.