Malibu High officials have plans to relocate students and teachers tomorrow during an investigation into health concerns at an older section of the school.
The students and teachers will be moved from 'Building E' to other classrooms on campus and at nearby Juan Cabrillo Elementary, according to Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Superintendent Sandra Lyon.
Lyon made the announcement while speaking to 350 parents and others who packed into the Malibu High School auditorium Tuesday night.
The district is hiring a crossing guard to help students cross the street during the transition, Lyon said.
It is not clear how long the probe into the health concerns with take, but Lyon said a timeline will be released by later this week.
Lyon's voice cracked as she addressed the standing-room-only crowd, apologizing for not having a better line of communication with parents.
"There was a lack of communication and a fear created in the community, and for that we apologize,'' she said. "We did have a plan to communicate with you, but that did not happen fast enough, and for that I apologize."
Lyon said Los Angeles County officials would conduct a voluntary survey of school employees' health, and mold testing would be completed at the campus by Friday -- and the results will be made public.
The district's risk manager, Gary Bradbury, said mold tests conducted last week determined that one of the affected buildings -- Building E -- had less airborne mold that outside background levels.
Moving crews arrived at the campus today to move materials out of the affected classrooms. Students will be moved out of Building E and the Arts and Music buildings.
Parent groups lashed out at the district Monday and demanded the relocation of classes. They also asked that a community liaison be hired to address what they called a crisis.
"By placing our kids and your staff in temporary buildings, the district can ensure safety, avoid liability, and prevent children from not going to school due to health concerns,'' the groups wrote in a letter to the district.
The letter was sent Monday, one night after news surfaced that one-third of the teachers at Malibu High School have complained about a rash of thyroid cancer, thyroid disease and other serious illnesses at the 60-teacher, 1,120- student school near Zuma Beach.
The district hauled 1,017 cubic yards of soil contaminated with PCBs, pesticides and hazardous materials in 2011, and its environmental report stated that termite treatments in a classroom built in the 1960s may have been the source.
Before Malibu High School was built, the land was used for agricultural purposes.
Other rooms are believed by teachers to have suffered water damage and breed mold. Most of the classrooms under suspicion are slated to be renovated in a project that has been delayed by appeals from some neighbors.
However, Malibu High parents criticized the lack of disclosure, and some said on Internet forums that they would ask their children be assigned independent study during classes in affected rooms.
-City News Service contributed to this report.
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