Braintree High Reopening Thursday After Negative Asbestos Testing

Braintree MA

08 September, 2021

8:08 PM

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BRAINTREE, MA — Braintree High School will reopen Thursday after asbestos air testing at the school came back negative, Mayor Charles Kokoros said. The school closed Wednesday, because about four to five asbestos titles were disturbed. Kokoros said before the closure, workers with a private contractor were brought in to do a deep cleaning of several classrooms, after inspectors notices some issues with some classes on the first floor. But during the deep cleaning, crews ended up removing small pieces of carpet in front of a few classrooms. When some carpet came up, so did several asbestos tiles, Kokoros said. The incident triggered a rule from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection requiring the school to close until asbestos testing could be done in the school. "First and foremost, we want to thank the parents and students for all their patience, and we apologize for the inconvenience," Kokoros said. "We will be making our way through the building to come up with a plan to address immediate issues." This was the second time the first day of school at Braintree High School was delayed this year. Originally, Braintree High School students were supposed to return to fully in-person classes on Sept. 1. But an electrical issue in the building forced school officials to delay the first day — which was supposed to be Wednesday, before the asbestos incident happened. Kokoros said he felt bad for students looking forward to returning to school after the coronavirus pandemic upended the 2020-21 school year with hybrid and virtual classes. And with students returning Thursday, the mayor said he will be there in the morning to greet every student as they return to school. "It makes it that much more difficult for the students," Kokoros said. "It was just a gamut of things we couldn't really plan for, and unfortunately they all happened right before the beginning of school," Kokoros said. Kokoros said he wants to explore ways to improve conditions at the high school, but when asked about the potential for state funding for a new building, the mayor was less optimistic, citing the strict priorities the Massachusetts School Building Authority uses for deciding which districts get money. "The two top issues that get people money are overcrowding and not having a solid building," Kokoros said. "The building is extremely well-built. It's just unfortunate the infrastructure needs a lot of work."