WDBJ7 Roanoke News and Weather NRV Lynchburg Danville | Concerned William Byrd parent says latest test results prove nothing
Member Center:
Angela Bradshaw wants to see more surface testing conducted inside the school. Until then, she doesn't feel William Byrd is safe.In a news conference Monday afternoon, Roanoke County School officials said environmental testing done at William Byrd High School revealed no foreign substances in the building.
The results are from surface tests conducted at the school in the kitchen and cafeteria. Roanoke County School officials said the independent testing firm was primarily checking for substances commonly found in pesticides. Testing will continue at the school.
But Angela Bradshaw says the latest results give her no relief. Bradshaw wants to see more surface testing conducted inside the school. Until then, she doesn't feel William Byrd is safe.
"The people who are saying we feel like it's 100% safe, and the school is safe, you just gotta pray it's not your child who comes home sick next," says Bradshaw.
She is so passionate about this because she knows several of the students who have been experiencing those twitching like symptoms.
"There's one little girl, she dropped her books and the kids couldn't help her because she was twitching so badly, they couldn't get near her," says Bradshaw.
Bradshaw kept her son home from school last week, but sent him back Monday because it would no longer be considered an excused absence. She fears parents like her are running out of options.
"Basically, what you have to do is put your house up for sale, move to another district, and start the child somewhere else in another school," says Bradshaw.
About 98 students stayed home from Byrd Monday, that's down from 300 on Friday. The school system says it contacted the parents of those 98 students and found only 15 stayed home Monday because of the situation at Byrd.
