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New Boiler Arrives At Prussing School Where Kids Got Sick

By Heather Cherone | September 7, 2016 6:01am
 The centerpiece of a new heating system for Prussing Elementary School was delivered Aug. 30.
The centerpiece of a new heating system for Prussing Elementary School was delivered Aug. 30.
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Facebook/Kristin Maynard Elouadrhiri

JEFFERSON PARK — As the mercury soared into the 90s on Tuesday — the first day of school at Prussing Elementary School — winter seemed a long way off.

But snow — and frigid temperatures — are coming, and when they do, the Jefferson Park school will be heated by a new boiler installed to replace one that sickened nearly 90 students and teachers in October.

Although Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool and other officials initially told parents after the incident that the boiler was a “solid, solid piece of equipment” and did not need to be replaced, parents told officials they did not feel comfortable sending their children back to school unless a new heating system was installed.

Parents of Prussing students accused CPS officials of putting their children at risk by trying to save money by not replacing the nearly 100-year-old boiler that had been the subject of a litany of complaints dating to 2013.

The new boiler was delivered to the school Aug. 30, parents and teachers said.

More than 5,000 carbon monoxide detectors were installed in schools across Chicago after the investigation of the incident at Prussing, 4650 N. Menard Ave., Claypool said.

When the boiler malfunctioned at Prussing Elementary School at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 30, the Jefferson Park school had no carbon monoxide detectors, which were not required by state law or city ordinance. A detector in the school's boiler room — in a separate building — was unplugged when the heating system malfunctioned, officials said.

A battery-operated detector was installed within 20 feet of every open flame on district property, including in boiler rooms and kitchens. Additional detectors were installed to cover every 10,000 square feet in schools, district officials said.

Several lawsuits have already been filed against the CPS in connection with the Prussing incident.

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