Wilkes-Barre Area Superintendent Brian Costello said the Solomon-Plains school complex will remain closed through Christmas break to clean smoke damage from a Nov. 20 fire, but the district will not require students to attend virtual classes during that time.
"We will recover as much time as possible throughout the remainder of the school year, and whatever cannot be made up during the year will be added to June," Costello wrote in a letter to families on Sunday. "Once finalized, we will share the updated calendar with all families."
The campus, located on Abbott Street in Plains Twp., includes the Leo E. Solomon elementary and middle schools.
Costello: 'Smoke traveled much farther'
The early morning fire at the Solomon Junior High building broke out on a Thursday before any students had arrived for the day, and fire damage was contained to one classroom.
Costello that day said the fire was quickly brought under control, but water spread to about six rooms and smoke traveled through the hallways.
Testing since then revealed that "smoke traveled much farther through the building than anyone expected," Costello wrote in his Sunday message.
"Over the past several days, Servpro and Hillmann — the environmental firm responsible for air-quality testing and safety assessments — have continued their detailed evaluation of the building," Costello wrote.
"The smoke moved through hallways and the HVAC system, carrying small carbon-based particles into different areas of the school. This shows how damaging smoke can be even when a fire is limited to one room," Costello added.
"Because of the levels found throughout the building, Hillmann has advised that we should not reopen the building until all restoration work is complete," he wrote.
That work will include removing all ceiling tiles, cleaning the space above the ceilings, fully cleaning the HVAC system and ductwork, and completing final air-quality testing to confirm the building is completely safe, Costello said.
"For this reason, the Solomon Complex will remain closed through Christmas break," he wrote. "We truly hoped the building would be ready sooner, but the safety of our students and staff must always come first."
What closure means for classes
According to a calendar posted on the school's website, Christmas vacation is scheduled from Wednesday, Dec. 24 until Friday, Jan. 2, with school set to reopen on Monday, Jan. 5.
Costello said the district will not continue with virtual learning during the extended shutdown at Solomon-Plains.
"Based on what we learned during COVID, long-term virtual instruction is not in the best interest of our students academically, socially, or emotionally," he wrote.
"Instead, the missed days will be made up the same way we handled snow days before virtual days were an option," Costello added, saying that the lost days will need to be made up later in the year.
The Solomon administrative team will share a message on Tuesday, he said.
"We will get through this together, and we will only return to the building when we are absolutely certain it is fully cleaned, safe, and ready for students and staff," Costello wrote.
