BY BRITTANY ANDERSON
KYLE — After recent concerns regarding gas smells at Negley Elementary, Hays CISD chief communication officer Tim Savoy has provided some clarification.
A concerned resident told The Hays Free Press that multiple children in affected classrooms were being sent home with nausea and headaches, and that students kept being moved in and out of classrooms.
According to Savoy, the school has had some issues with faint gas smells in the construction area of the school’s new wing when they have had to use heaters. The contractor did a full inspection within the past week and discovered that some of the heating units on igniters that were internally installed at the manufacturer were slightly out of specification.
“The contractors that installed the units have adjusted the igniters on the inside of the units and checked all of them. We hope this has addressed the problem,” Savoy said. “The construction of this wing at Negley was caught in the COVID-related supply chain issues for HVAC units. It appears the units we did receive were not all set properly at the manufacturer.”
Savoy went on to say that another gas smell came from one of the units on Feb. 15 and that the contractors will be called back out to check.
“In the meantime, we are going to not use the wing until they are able to fully resolve the issue,” Savoy said. “We’ll have students go to class elsewhere in the building.”
The Hays Free Press will continue to provide updates on this story as possible.
