Parents say Kennedy Elementary School in Newark has a massive flea infestation, and now they’re pleading with the district to take more action after they say their children started coming home with bites.
Laura Patrick is self-tracking the bites through an online social media parent group. She said her numbers show around 50 students have been bit in 14 of the school’s 17 classrooms, with more than 500 bites reported.
“Can we see evidence that the problem is getting fixed? Right now it’s me collecting data and seeing that data and seeing people still getting bit,” she said. “It’s hard to know is it actually getting better.”
The school district told parents last month that fleas had been found on campus. The district noted there has also been reports of increased flea activity in surrounding neighborhoods.
The district said pest control has conducted multiple campuswide inspections and treatments. The district is also installing monitoring devices and said follow-up inspections are scheduled.
But parents said even after all that students are still getting bit.
“Maybe shut down the school for a week, bomb the whole thing and get rid of them,” parent Daniel Galarsa said.
In a statement, the district said, in part, “…our pest control partners have advised us that the appropriate measures have been successfully implemented. Recent inspections have found no evidence of ongoing activity…”
A parent who asked to remain anonymous said both of her daughters have been bit, one of them 34 times. She said she’s considering taking her children out of the school if the district does not come up with a solution for the pests.
“It’s been a few days since she hasn’t been bit,” the parent said. “If she gets bit again I’m going to ask for alternative learning situations or to transfer to a different school.”
The family of fifth grader Isal Milas said she had an allergic reaction after getting bit multiple times. Now her father, Giovanni De Torres, wants to see more urgency from the district.
“I would prefer issues to be resolved faster so that she doesn’t have to encounter the type of pain that she went through,” De Torres said.
Source: NBC Bay Area