CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Attorneys sued the Kanawha County Board of Education Wednesday over what the lawsuit calls "excessive levels" of mold, dust and other unidentified contaminants at Andrew Jackson Middle School in Cross Lanes and the health problems they pose.

Last week, parents said children and staff got sick at the school, while state and local school officials said air tests indicated the school was safe for students.

Charleston attorneys Harry Bell Jr. and Bill Bands filed the suit in Kanawha Circuit Court Wednesday on behalf of Angela D. Basham and her daughter, student Emily Paige Basham.

Superintendent Ron Duerring, who did not immediately return a phone message, is also named as a defendant. 

Bell and Bands want to make the lawsuit a class action to represent any Andrew Jackson student since 1996 and students who enroll while the lawsuit is pending. The suit alleges that school officials became aware of unsafe and hazardous conditions at the school in 1996.

The lawsuit alleges that excessive mold, dust and other unidentified contaminants, airborne or otherwise, has caused some students to develop or has aggravated serious health conditions, which include diseases, infections and allergies.

Last week, some parents said children suffered headaches, coughing fits and other problems when they enter the school.

The school board contracted with officials at Pinnacle Environmental. Air tests showed that mold levels were not at unsafe levels, they said. Bill Elswick, facilities head for the state Department of Education, agreed that the school is safe for students.      

Bands expects the school officials will cite the recent air test results in court proceedings.

Yet he said the lawsuit seeks a medical monitoring system, with diagnostic exams and other treatment, for all those students who attended Andrew Jackson since 1996 and suspect that their health problems are tied to conditions at the school. The lawsuit asks the school system to pay for the medical monitoring.

It is unclear what health problems students both past and present have developed, either airborne or otherwise, Bands said.   

"They just can't come in and paint with a broad brush that everything is OK with what they've now done," he said.

School board general counsel Jim Withrow could not be reached for comment late Wednesday afternoon.

Staff writer Andrew Clevenger contributed to this report. Reach Davin White at davinwh...@wvgazette.com or 348-1254.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Attorneys sued the Kanawha County Board of Education Wednesday over what the lawsuit calls "excessive levels" of mold, dust and other unidentified contaminants at Andrew Jackson Middle School in Cross Lanes and the health problems they pose.

Last week, parents said children and staff got sick at the school, while state and local school officials said air tests indicated the school was safe for students.

Charleston attorneys Harry Bell Jr. and Bill Bands filed the suit in Kanawha Circuit Court Wednesday on behalf of Angela D. Basham and her daughter, student Emily Paige Basham.

Superintendent Ron Duerring, who did not immediately return a phone message, is also named as a defendant. 

Bell and Bands want to make the lawsuit a class action to represent any Andrew Jackson student since 1996 and students who enroll while the lawsuit is pending. The suit alleges that school officials became aware of unsafe and hazardous conditions at the school in 1996.

The lawsuit alleges that excessive mold, dust and other unidentified contaminants, airborne or otherwise, has caused some students to develop or has aggravated serious health conditions, which include diseases, infections and allergies.

Last week, some parents said children suffered headaches, coughing fits and other problems when they enter the school.

The school board contracted with officials at Pinnacle Environmental. Air tests showed that mold levels were not at unsafe levels, they said. Bill Elswick, facilities head for the state Department of Education, agreed that the school is safe for students.      

Bands expects the school officials will cite the recent air test results in court proceedings.

Yet he said the lawsuit seeks a medical monitoring system, with diagnostic exams and other treatment, for all those students who attended Andrew Jackson since 1996 and suspect that their health problems are tied to conditions at the school. The lawsuit asks the school system to pay for the medical monitoring.

It is unclear what health problems students both past and present have developed, either airborne or otherwise, Bands said.   

"They just can't come in and paint with a broad brush that everything is OK with what they've now done," he said.

School board general counsel Jim Withrow could not be reached for comment late Wednesday afternoon.

Staff writer Andrew Clevenger contributed to this report. Reach Davin White at davinwh...@wvgazette.com or 348-1254.