Officials: Gas Smell At BRMS Not Dangerous

Broad Rock Middle School students brought some extra paperwork home to parents today.

School Principal Sheila Sullivan sent a letter home telling parents that students are safe at school despite repeated reports of gas smells throughout the building.

According to Union Fire District (UFD) logs, students and faculty have reported repeated instances of a gas smell throughout the building since September. Since Jan. 1 firefighters have responded to the school seven times.

"As you may be aware, there has been an odor that has been detected in our school that seems to correlate with the time that the heat turns on in any given room," said Sullivan in the letter. A copy is attached to this article.

According to John Ritchotte, director of administrative services to South Kingstown schools, the UFD responds every time a gas smell is reported per protocol, but meters do not detect any gas leaks.

UFD responded to the school twice on Friday. Because meters do not read a gas leak, students are not evacuated.

"Everything is safe right now, and we are looking into it now," said Chief Robert Perry in an interview on Friday.

He said reports of the smell started weeks ago and said the UFD was working in conjunction with the superintendant's and town manager's office to find the root of the smell.

An independent consultant, Ray Horridge, an engineer who helped design Broad Rock Middle School's heating system, will head to the school on Monday to ensure the system is functioning properly.

"We're going to continue to pursue this until we can explain it," said Ritchotte. "We're on top of it."