Two classrooms were severely flooded as a result of the April 15 rains, leading to dirty and smelly carpets in urgent need of replacement.

Costs of replacement and how to prevent a similar situation from happening in the near future were among the questions discussed at the April 19 Salisbury Township School District board meeting.

Superintendent Lynn Fuini-Hetten started the discussions by saying “We had two water infiltration issues. One, we had overflowing roof drains and two, we had groundwater coming up from the ground.”

She went on to explain how she went up on the roof to ensure the roof drains were not clogged. Not all of the roof has an overflow drain.

Two of the classrooms received severe water damage. In addition, the second grade hallway had a stench days after the storm.

Fuini-Hetten went on to say an independent contractor was scheduled April 20 to examine the classrooms to determine which ones would need carpet replacement and also provide an estimate for labor and materials.

Air testing for classrooms were conducted.

Board Member Thomas Spinner started a discussion on cost and options on how to replace the saturated carpets of those two classrooms and even of the whole building. Also discussed was the option of replacing the carpet flooring with hard flooring, as was done in the middle school.

Vice President Joseph Gnall made his position clear, saying, “If our drains are clogged outside, that’s an issue.”

“I want to find a fix for this. A fix-fix, not a Band-Aid™ fix,” Gnall said.

Board Member Joseph Kuzo agreed. “What if we get torrential downpours a week after we replace the carpet. We’ve done nothing to remedy the root cause of it,” Kuzo said.

It was agreed that although the situation of the two classrooms must be rectified immediately, a larger issue of ensuring the safety of the building for students and staff must be addressed.

An insurance claim has been submitted and the board is waiting for a response.