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Nov 11, 2023

Boiler Woes Close RUHS, RTCC

By Staff | on November 17, 2022

By Staff | on November 17, 2022

With the main water pipe running from the boiler room to RTCC and RUHS failing last week, both schools are currently closed until repairs can be made. (Herald / Kyan Smith)

Out of class since Monday, it may be a while before students can return to Randolph Union High School and the Randolph Technical Career Center. Late last week the main pipe that circulates hot water through the complex's heating system failed, leaving the two buildings without any source of heat or hot water. In an email Friday evening, Orange Southwest School District Superintendent Layne Millington alerted parents that RUHS and RTCC would be closed at least through Wednesday, however since then parts needed to repair damage to the heating system have proven difficult to come by, extending the closure even longer.

Millington wrote that the main pipe to the boiler that serves both RTCC and RUHS failed, "meaning that neither building has heat or hot water, nor can they be occupied until the repairs are complete."

The line, he added, runs from a small utility building behind RTCC that houses the boilers. He wrote that the repair would be "a massive one," that will require cutting into the back parking lot and the foundation of the building and it was unclear how long the work might take and how soon students would be able to return to school.

The Orange Southwest School District's elementary schools, each located on separate campuses, were unaffected by the breakage and have continued classes as normal.

"The facilities team is working with the contractors to find a portable temporary boiler we can connect directly into the heating system to get things up and running until the main repair is finished," Millington wrote. In an updated message Tuesday night, the superintendent confirmed that the RU and RTCC campuses would remain closed at least through this week and added that availability of parts will likely hold off the final repair until mid-January.

Millington said the district had reached out to the Agency of Education to request permission to hold classes remotely until the repairs are complete, since remote session is no longer allowed since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted late last year. According to RUHS Co-principal Lisa Manning Floyd, the district had heard back that the state's Board of Education would need to convene to authorize an exception for remote classes, which was unlikely. The board's next-scheduled meeting is in February, she noted.

Lack of heat in the building as colder temperatures move in, means more than just chilly classrooms. Floyd and co-principal Caty Sutton pointed out that hot water is also unavailable, putting a crimp on bathrooms, sanitation, and meals.

"Right now, keeping the building warm to protect our resources—or warm enough—is really important," Floyd said, adding that heaters may be set up to keep parts of the buildings warm enough to avoid plumbing pipes from freezing.

"We’re looking into alternatives," Sutton said, "in case the timeline is extended beyond what is anticipated at this point."

That will likely include finding alternative spaces around town to meet with students.

"We have a number of solid plans in place that we are in the process of finalizing," Millington wrote in his second message. "It is possible that we can begin bringing some students back next week, but this is not assured."

Floyd said that contractors jumped right to work over the weekend to find the source of the problem but ran into the "same old supply chain issues" with parts that have slowed the repair.

"We’re hoping for more specific details about a timeline by Wednesday," Floyd said.

In his email, Superintendent Millington also noted that he still plans to hold a community forum later this week, but at a new venue.

That forum, which will focus on issues surrounding the use of locker rooms by transgender students, is set for tonight, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. at the Randolph Elementary School cafeteria.