Crieff Primary School to re-open on Monday following evacuation
Eleven staff members were taken to hospital and discharged with no immediate medical concerns
Crieff Primary School will re-open on Monday, 9th September, after it was evacuated on Thursday.
Emergency services attended to the school following a report of a 'potential chemical leak' on Thursday, 5th September.
Eleven members of staff were taken to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee after a member of staff became unwell in the kitchen. There were no immediate medical concerns and all were discharged after clinical assessment.
After an investigation, the Scottish Fire and Rescue service confirmed no hazardous substances were found in the kitchen with no evidence of a gas leak. Checks on gas, water and electricity alongside tests for carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide were also carried out.
A specialist firm has been contacted to carry out further investigations in the school's kitchen, though all equipment in the kitchen has been cleared of any fault after testing.
The kitchen will remain closed while investigations are carried out. Packed lunches will be provided to pupils until the kitchen re-opens. They will be taken into classrooms rather than the dining area.
A deep clean of the facilities is set to take place this weekend as a precautionary measure.
Sheena Devlin, Strategic Lead for Education and Learning with Perth and Kinross Council said: “This has been a very difficult week for pupils and staff and I would like to thank them, and parents and carers, for the way they have responded this week.
“Following extensive testing and consultation with partners and NHS Tayside, we will re-open to pupils on Monday.
“However, we have appointed a specialist company to carry out a forensic check of the kitchen and its appliances to make sure everything is working exactly as it should so our staff, pupils and wider school community can have absolute peace of mind.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: “We were alerted at 11.26am on Thursday, 5 September to reports of a potential chemical leak at a school on Broich Road, Crieff.
“Operations Control mobilised one appliance and two specialist appliances to the scene.
“After a thorough inspection no hazardous materials were found.
“Crews left after ensuring the area was made safe.”
Reassuring parents and carers, Perthshire South and Kinross-shire MSP Jim Fairlie said: "I can fully understand if people were concerned, but I'm being reassured by local authorities.
"First of all, they would never risk allowing children to come back into the school if there was an issue.
"They should be comforted by the fact that they have done a thorough investigation and that the local authority would absolutely take the most serious action if there was an issue there."