ALLENTOWN — Good intentions paved the school district’s path into a couple of unfortunate situations Aug. 20.
Superintendent of Schools Dick Fitzpatrick said that Wednesday was an unexpectedly active day in the Upper Freehold Regional School District, stemming from two separate incidents that required the response of emergency services.
Fitzpatrick reported that early in the morning that day he received a phone call from the Murphy Farm, which neighbors the property along Breza Road where the district is constructing its new middle school. The farmer explained that there seemed to be some confusion about where contractors should turn on Farmers Road to get into the middle school site.
Fitzpatrick said that the district had placed signs on a fence in the area.
“We placed signs on a fence that couldn’t close freely,” he said.
The district decided to move the fence and when digging a new hole for a post, hit a gas line, Fitzpatrick said.
“Gas was leaking from the puncture,” he said. “But the response was phenomenal from school officials, the gas company and the Allentown police. We also had the ambulance and fire department there. We received excellent attention in a prompt fashion.”
Fitzpatrick said the gas was shut off and the leaking line was repaired. He also noted that those who responded assisted customers of a nearby kennel in retrieving their pets during the incident.
“There was successful intervention,” he said. “The police couldn’t have been more supportive.”
Later on that day, ambulances responded to the Upper Freehold Regional Elementary/Middle School on High Street as a precautionary measure because an employee had an accident with a floor buffer while preparing for the school to open Sept. 4, according to Fitzpatrick.
“The handle came loose and she went forward and fell,” Fitzpatrick said. “We decided to be cautious and took her to the hospital in an ambulance.”
Fitzpatrick added, “We started the day with an ambulance and ended it with one.”
With regard to the opening of the elementary/ middle school, Fitzpatrick said, “We have more tasks than time but will not sleep until everything is ready.”
He said 21 rooms in the school were not vacated of summer classes until Aug. 15.
The school district has made some updates to the structure, including the installation of sky-blue, sound-absorbing panels in the cafeteria “that will not interfere with artwork.”
Fitzpatrick also said that the lemon yellow hallways in the school have been painted a softer white and bulletin boards have been painted in soft gold.
Two areas where asbestos was located, in the office and a classroom, have also been remediated, Fitzpatrick said.
He also said that the walkway from the annex to the high school has been widened to 8 feet to accommodate three classes moving back and forth between the buildings.