Overview
- The West Contra Costa Unified School District announced Monday that it has closed Kennedy High and barred staff and students after preliminary vapor tests showed tetrachloroethylene (PCE) under the campus.
- The Department of Toxic Substances Control told the district that the early results do not indicate an immediate health threat but that additional indoor-air, soil and groundwater testing is needed to verify safety.
- The district has said it will temporarily relocate school operations for the start of the year but has not yet named an alternate site or given a reopening timeline.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention links PCE exposure to nervous-system effects, liver and kidney harm and higher cancer risk, which is why officials call the closure a precaution.
- Local officials note PCE in Richmond has been tied to past dry-cleaning and groundwater movement, and the coming weeks of testing will shape mitigation steps, the school’s schedule and family logistics.