Tar Fumes Sicken Staff, Students; OSHA Investigates D135 Roof Work

ORLAND PARK, IL — Roofing at Orland District 135's Centennial School is under investigation, after some staff and students reportedly fell ill from tar fumes.

The work took place at the school, 14101 Creek Crossing Dr., earlier this week, while school was in session. Some students and staff complained of symptoms related to exposure to the fumes, told to Patch as including headaches, light-headedness, dry/scratchy throats, nausea, vision issues, and dry/itchy/burning eyes.

In a letter to parents sent Thursday, Superintendent John Bryk said the project used "an industry-standard, time-tested hot mastic adhesive application that meets the current code requirements," and that the district, "implemented ... mitigation measures before the start of each roofing application."

Precautions included the school’s HVAC system adjusted to reduce the intake of outside air being brought into the school; inspection of the HVAC's filtration system; guidance to ensure all windows were closed, and air purifiers for each room, Bryk said in the letter.

"The process for the roof has been tested and proven to be safe and up to code per OSHA and industry standards for people to still be in the building while the roof is worked on," Bryk wrote.

Still, some staff felt ill from the fumes and left early both Monday and Tuesday, with one student also reporting feeling unwell while outside on school premises, Bryk said.

"Although the process for the roof has been tested and proven safe and up to code per OSHA and industry standards," Bryk wrote, "the District will explore other options during the school day when staff and students are present."

In an email to Patch, an unnamed source close to the incident claimed, "concerns were brought to administration at various levels multiple times," and that Superintendent Bryk "was alerted to and present during" some of the fumes.

"It is extremely concerning to us that the district is knowingly putting staff and students at risk in hazardous unsafe environments," the source wrote to Patch.

The complaint was initially sent to the federal office of The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which then handed it over to the Illinois OSHA office as dictated by jurisdiction. In Bryk's letter to families, Bryk said representatives from OSHA had visited the site and determined no citations were necessary.

An Illinois Department of Labor Friday representative said Friday, however, that the complaints are still under investigation by state-level OSHA and labor departments, and that they were not aware of any Illinois OSHA representatives having visited the site. Any OSHA representatives who had visited the site would have most likely been on the federal level.

Illinois OSHA and the Department of Labor on Thursday issued a notice to Orland District 135. Orland District 135 Board President Linda Peckham Dodge provided Patch with the letter, with personal narrative and details of the complaints redacted:

Please note there is no OSHA permissible exposure limit (PEL) for asphalt fumes.
However, the allegations include staff members experienced illness after being
exposed to the fumes.

... We have not determined whether the hazard(s), as alleged, exists at your workplace and we do not intend to conduct an inspection at this time. We request that you immediately investigate and control any hazardous conditions.

— a letter from the Illinois Department of Labor, Illinois OSHA to Orland District 135

The letter cites Illinois code specifying that "every public employer must provide reasonable protection to the lives, health, and safety of its employees and must furnish to each of its employees’ employment and a workplace which are free from recognized hazards that cause or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to its employees."

The letter states that the District nor contractor are not being issued citations at this time. The District is required to respond by Feb. 26 to prevent further action by OSHA.

"If we do not receive a satisfactory response from you by February 26, 2024, indicating that corrective action has been taken or that no hazard exists and why, an Illinois OSHA inspection may be conducted," the letter reads.

Peckham Dodge told Patch the roofing work was fully completed this week and that the District next week will provide OSHA with the information they've requested.