FRESH AIR IS SOLUTION TO KIDS' COMPLAINTS AT PANGUITCH HIGH

Garfield County School District officials say engineers may have found a solution to air circulation problems that have plagued Panguitch High School with health complaints since it opened two years ago.

Earlier this week, angry parents whose children have complained of fatigue, headaches and nausea threatened to picket the school and take their children out of classes until the problem was corrected.Shortly after the school opened in 1986, students and staff noticed a strange odor in the air and started complaining of frequent headaches.

School secretary Marlene Miller said that engineers were working to adjust the air flow so more fresh air could get inside the building. For the first time in several months, classrooms that had previously been closed because of the air problems were open on Thursday.

"It's nice, very nice, to get some air in here, we can really tell a difference," she said.

Miller said she feels the problem is solved as long as engineers can keep the fresh air flowing.

Earlier tests by state and federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials showed levels of radon, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide in the air.

Ray Englestead, president of the school board, said he visited the school Wednesday and noticed a big difference in the air.

The school has 114 students and 15 classrooms.

Englestead said another public meeting will be held sometime next week to discuss the problem.