Pueblo parents say they weren’t notified of lead in water fountains

Pueblo parents respond to a year-long study which found high levels of lead in the school drinking fountains.

According to School District 60, parents in each school were notified of the results once the testing was completed. However, many people called into KRDO with complaints they never received any results.

Meet Kenny

Kenny Vigil is the father of a student who attends Heroes Academy on Pueblo’s north side.

“He just started there this year,” Vigil said.

Like many parents, Vigil remembered when the district announced they would proactively be searching for lead in the school drinking water.

“How could we forget that, that was big news for the school community,” said Vigil.

KRDO obtained documents compiled from District 60 showing the results of the water testing for each school. “Heroes Academy” finished testing in January of 2018, but parents with students there tell us they never received any results.

“I never received any type of email, letter, text, or anything sent home,” Vigil said.

Cynthia Carriere who’s son goes to Heaton Middle School also told KRDO the same thing.

“I never got anything,” Carriere said.

Tom Ornelas, whose son attends East High School, also said he didn’t receive anything from the district.

According to data provided on the district’s website, there are 15 filtration systems that were added to East two months ago because lead levels tested at 60, 82, and 95 parts per billion (ppb) — double and triple the amount over the Environmental Protection Agency’s safe limit.

KRDO also heard from parents with children attending Sunset Park Elementary, South, and East High School. Other people took to Facebook to share they didn’t get word of any results.

District 60 ‘s spokesperson Dalton Sprouse said school districts sent out the notification when the testing was complete. Sprouse also told us in an email that a letter was sent home with students.

After concerns from D-60 parents, we reached out to Timothy Luebbert, a child neurologist with Children’s Hospital of Colorado.

“We worry about any exposure of lead, so even small amounts are things that worry me in terms of childhood development,” Luebbert said.

Lubbert said even consuming small amounts of lead can affect a child’s ability to learn.

It’s important to note, under Federal Law, no school district is required to test for lead in school drinking water.

Previous Story

Pueblo District 60 just finished a more than a year-long testing cycle in all 30 of its schools to disable and fix water sources that had high levels of lead.

We uncovered nine different schools that had a combined total of nearly 50 water fountains that needed replacements or new filtration systems because lead levels tested well over the safe limit.

Below, is the timeline of schools that required changes:

In January, Heroes Academy disabled four. In February, Sunset Park Elementary disabled six, Paragon Learning Center disabled four, and Highland Park Elementary disabled two. In April, Pueblo Academy of Arts had five fountains or water lines replaced; Roncalli Stem Academy replaced five, and there was one replaced at Heaton Middle School. In July, South high school had seven filtration systems added.

But East high topped the list with the 15 filtration systems added recently in June.

“It’s very concerning, very scary,” said Tom Ornelas, who had children attend these schools before this testing started.

The report indicates the levels were most notably high in places like the kitchen, cafeteria, auditorium, and even the classrooms.

The Environmental Protection Agency states lead levels shouldn’t exceed 15 ppb. But the water in some those locations tested at 60 ppb, 82 ppb, or even as high as 95 ppb.

The CDC also states lead poisoning can affect the entire body, and if consumed in a high enough dose can be deadly.

According to the district, testing started at the beginning of last school year. Pueblo Water not only facilitated the testing, but also funded it.

District 60 spokesperson Dalton Sprouse said the Flint water crisis of 2014 prompted the testing.

“We obviously being one of the largest school districts in the state, definitely wanted to be proactive as well,” Sprouse said.

Right now, schools nationwide are not mandated to test for lead in drinking water, despite recommendations from the EPA.

“Who knows what it will do to them, how it will affect them,” said Ornelas.

For more information on the testing results, click here.