Teachers Worry Malibu High May Be Source
of Cancer
School officials are testing
Malibu High for contamination that some fear maybe making teachers sick
By Adrian Arambulo and Jason Kandel| Monday, Oct 7, 2013
| Updated 4:04 PM PDT
After several teachers at
Malibu High School reported they have thyroid cancer and others reported other
maladies, officials began testing the campus for carcinogens. Adrian Arambulo
reports for the NBC4 News at Noon on Monday, Oct. 7, 2013.
Malibu High School students
and staff returned to campus Monday for the first time since learning that some
classrooms are being tested for contamination that some fear could be a cause
of recent cancer diagnoses for several teachers.
Three teachers who work in
the same building have recently been diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Others have
reported thyroid problems. Some have skin rashes and have lost their hair.
District officials said they
have hired an Arcadia engineering firm to look closer at classroom conditions,
interview the sick teachers and check into a report showing contaminated soil
was removed from campus three years ago.
“We will do everything we
can to make sure our teachers and students continue to be safe again,” said
Jerry Block, the Malibu High principal, adding he expects the test results back
soon. “We have no reason to believe they're not safe right now.”
Parents dropping off their
kids on Monday were not only worried about the sick teachers but also their
children.
“I worry because I just
heard it on the radio and I don't know what happened,” said parent Nery Godoy.
Carrie Krase is so concerned
she is pulling her two kids out of class, at least until she gets more answers.
“You start looking at your
own kids,” she said. “You know they had that stomache ache. They had that
headache. You start to think your children must be affected as well.”
She says the school and the
district have a lot of work to do to make her feel like her kids are safe.
Sandra Lyon, the
superintendent of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, said she
wouldn’t have opened the campus if she thought conditions were not safe.
“At this point we don't have
any reason to believe it is not a safe building,” she said.
But parents want the
district to be sure.
So some are forming a group
to demand answers and accountability.
“They're wonderful teachers.
We need to protect them and take care of them,” said Laureen Sills, a parent.
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