Kyrene closes Sierra campus through fall break after industrial roofing fumes trigger elevated VOC readings; district installs filters and posts preliminary lab

The Kyrene Elementary District temporarily closed the Kyrene de la Sierra campus after district‑commissioned preliminary air testing detected elevated volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during ongoing summer roofing work, Superintendent Laura Tenas said at the board’s Aug. 5 meeting.

Tenas told the board that the district first received a written complaint July 31 and hired a third‑party certified industrial hygienist to conduct preliminary testing on Aug. 1; a follow‑up test on Aug. 3 again showed elevated VOCs. Based on the certified industrial hygienist’s recommendation, the district’s emergency management team recommended closure and immediate mitigation; the district decided to keep the campus closed through fall break to complete mitigation and roofing work in reduced‑occupancy conditions.

What the district did and why

Facilities staff told the board that the district requires standard roofing‑project health and safety protocols, including sealing rooftop fresh‑air intakes and following material safety guidance. During the Aug. 1 testing, staff discovered a required air‑intake sealing practice had not been in place; preliminary air testing indicated elevated VOCs but did not identify specific compounds. Facilities presenters said the district implemented mitigation recommended by the industrial hygienist, including sealing air intakes, replacing HVAC filters (the district said it has standard MERV‑8 two‑inch filters, which were replaced), installing carbon filters on intakes, and deploying portable air scrubbers with activated carbon around campus. The district said it would re‑test air quality before students and staff return to campus.

Timing, communications and next steps

Erin Hill, the district’s director of communications and engagement, said the district sent an initial message to staff and families on Friday when preliminary results were reported and posted a Sierra roof web page with updates and test reports. The district told the board it would provide daily updates for as long as necessary and that an initial set of preliminary laboratory results had been posted that afternoon; staff said they were working to expedite complete lab analyses and hoped to have final results by the end of the week (staff mentioned Thursday, Aug. 7, as the target date for full results during the meeting).

Parents and staff raised concerns at the meeting and during public comment. Several parents said children and staff smelled fumes during prior weeks and described immediate health effects (headaches, eye or throat irritation, and asthma exacerbations for some students). Public‑comment speakers said they had repeatedly reported smells to on‑site staff and expressed frustration that families and the school health office had not received more timely or detailed information. Several speakers said they had contacted facilities staff directly and asked for safety data sheets for materials being used on the roof; presenters said safety data sheets and the industrial hygienist’s reports would be provided on the public web page.

District response and review

Emergency management commander Damien Nichols said the district convenes a certified emergency management team that follows NIMS‑style protocols and meets 24/7 if required. Nichols said the team would review the response and identify lessons learned and recommended procedural changes; the superintendent told the board the emergency team had recommended the district consider whether baseline air testing should be standard for projects that use products that can emit VOCs, and to work with vendors to align testing timing so test results are available before school starts.

Ending

The board heard the district’s mitigation steps and timelines and asked staff to post full lab results, to summarize lessons learned after the response concludes, and to evaluate whether routine pre‑project testing should become a standard practice for roofing or other projects that risk VOC exposure. The district said it would not re‑open Sierra until post‑mitigation testing showed air quality within acceptable limits and that it would continue to provide daily updates to families.