Oxford school officials expect O&G Industries of Torrington to cover the repairs made to Oxford High School, which suffered cracks in its walls and a floor due to the heavy snow load last week.
O&G was in charge of building the five-year-old school.
Yesterday (Thursday, Feb. 10) was the first time school was in session after the cracks were discovered Feb. 4.
A much-discussed report from a structural engineer was not available from school officials Thursday, but Superintendent Edward Malvey said inspections found the school to be safe.
Repairs were made and walls were reinforced, Malvey said.
How much the incident cost the school district wasn’t available. O&G is expected to foot the bill for the repairs, the superintendent said.
“I’m hopeful there will be no cost involved. They (O&G) seem to be agreeable to it,” Malvey said.
A message was left with the construction company.
Thursday was the first day back at school and it went without a hitch, school officials said.
“Everything was smooth, people were thrilled to be back in there, particularly the students,” Malvey said. “You heard what the students said at the Board of Education meeting the other night, how they want to be back in school. I believe they spoke from the heart.”Student Kathleen Mifflin, who spoke at the Board of Education meeting earlier this week, said she was not nervous at all about being in the building.
She said officials took their time making repairs because safety was the priority.
“It wasn’t too bad, but it was harder to get up in the morning,” Mifflin said.
At school, everything seemed in perfect order. There was no evidence that anything had been out of sorts, she said.
The school’s principal made an announcement welcoming students back to classes, Mifflin said.
