Districts Report Safety Problems At Idaho Schools

At many North Idaho schools, the only way to trigger a fire alarm is by pulling it although smoke and heat detectors are supposed to be required items.

Some schools have roofs that aren’t anchored to walls, outdated wiring and no fresh air unless teachers open a window. Others lack emergency lighting, fire-safe corridors and adequate fire exits.

These problems and more are detailed in reports school districts submitted to the state about their worst safety problems. Although the numbers aren’t all in, the total already tops $100 million.

“There are some problems out there that shouldn’t wait - short-term, dangerous-type things that we want to address,” said Tom Boyd, a member of the state Board of Education.

Outgoing state schools Superintendent Anne Fox said, “I think if the public were to know that these problems exist, … they’d be enraged.”

Tom Dillon, head of the Board of Education, said, “I believe before we have a disaster that the state absolutely has a role to ensure safety.”

Dillon’s concern prompted the call for reports from school districts on their safety problems. He’s hoping to put together an emergency plan to present to the Legislature to address the worst problems right away.

House Education Committee Chairman Fred Tilman, R-Boise, and Senate Education Committee Chairman Gary Schroeder, R-Moscow, expressed hope that some solution could be found. But Tilman warned that school districts have lots of responsibility in this area.

“They make their own decisions. They need to step up to the plate. …If we are putting children in peril, close the building. It’s that simple,” Tilman said.

Said Schroeder, “We’re trying to encourage those who can fix these safety concerns to do it, and we’re trying to help those that can’t help themselves.”

Dillon and other officials outlined possible solutions ranging from the state issuing $100 million in bonds and loaning the money to the districts for repairs; to allowing special, lower-margin bond elections for safety problems; to penalizing districts that don’t fix problems by canceling their insurance or withholding state funding.

In inspection reports completed on 600 public schools statewide this year as part of the accreditation process, 205 showed safety problems, said Tom Farley of the state Department of Education. The vast majority of those are repeat violations, that keep showing up because the districts don’t have the money to fix them.

Eighty-five of the state’s 112 school districts responded to Dillon’s call for a list of safety problems. Of those, 19 - including Lakeland and Post Falls - said they had no significant safety problems in their schools.

Lakeland Superintendent Robert Jones wrote, “We do have other facility needs!”

Post Falls reported that while it didn’t consider them safety problems, it’s dealing with aging buildings, worn-out heating systems, deteriorating roofs and old plumbing and electrical systems.

This sidebar appeared with the story: SAFETY CONCERNS Some of the safety problems reported in North Idaho: Boundary County. Serious structural problems at Mount Hall and Valley View elementary schools, and problems with a portion of the high school. Valley View gym collapsed under heavy snow in December 1996. The district’s insurer said it wouldn’t pay for replacing an identical gym at Mount Hall because it was structurally unsound before the roof collapse. Because Boundary County didn’t include any cost estimates for fixing the problems, its problems aren’t reflected in the $100 million statewide total. Bonner County. Millions of dollars in safety problems, from a lack of smoke detectors, fire exits and fresh air intakes to structural problems involving roof trusses and anchors at Priest River Junior High, Northside Elementary and the gym at Southside Elementary. Many of the schools have asbestos that should be removed; doors and frames that don’t meet fire codes; fire alarm systems that lack a backup power source; and damaged concrete. Coeur d’Alene. The district needs to spend $500,000 to update the old boiler at Project CDA, $540,000 to bring playground equipment and surfaces at seven elementary schools up to code and $28,000 to update wiring at Winton Elementary School. Lakes Middle School needs air conditioning upstairs, because summer and fall temperatures inside can reach the high 90s and even the low 100s. Kellogg. Costly and serious problems ranging from a lack of safety glass in many of its schools, to a lack of smoke or heat detectors at Kellogg Middle School and Pinehurst Elementary. At Canyon Elementary, a county road runs between the school and the playground, and the district estimates the cost of changing that at $80,000. Students at Pinehurst Elementary use an area over a boiler room, and the boiler room is prone to flooding. That set-up would cost $250,000 to correct. Corridors and classrooms aren’t fire-rated - a $300,000 item - and playground equipment stands over concrete and asphalt, an $80,000 problem. An open, three-story staircase at Kellogg High doesn’t meet fire standards, and would cost $30,000 to correct. Mullan. The school’s roof doesn’t meet new roof load requirements. That would take $85,000 to correct. Avery. Kindergarten through third-grade students are on the second floor of a building that has unstable floors and inadequate wiring. The basement ceiling is too low. Repair costs total $1.4 million. Plummer-Worley. The school district reported $453,000 strictly in safety and code repair needs, not counting electrical and mechanical updates. The district estimates its highest-priority repairs and upgrades at $3.7 million. The problems include a lack of heat and smoke sensors at Worley Elementary, unsafe corridors at Lakeside Middle School and Lakeside High and a need for exit lighting and fire alarm upgrades at all three schools.