Schools remove swings to follow law


The changes are in response to ‘Jarod’s Law,’ named for a boy killed when a cafeteria table fell on him.

LIMA, Ohio (AP) — Schools are removing some swings and merry-go-rounds from playgrounds to comply with a new law aimed at protecting pupils from safety hazards.

The changes are forcing schools to spend more money, but few are complaining.

“At first, you look at it and kind of shrug your shoulders, but it has made us a better district,” said Mark Miller, business manager for the Elida school district. “We are all for it.”

The district removed a merry-go-round at one school, and some climbing equipment because it was too close to a slide.

“Our playgrounds look a lot different than they did when they kids left in the spring,” Miller said.

The changes are being made in response to “Jarod’s Law” — named after a 6-year-old boy killed at a school when a folding cafeteria table fell on him.

Schools with older buildings face the most work to comply, but all schools will be affected in some way. Among requirements, all are being told to lock up cleaning materials and chemicals used in labs.

Elida will spend about $20,000 out of its general fund to do things such as grinding down sidewalks to prevent pupils from tripping on hazards.

Ottawa schools

Schools in Ottawa will spend about $7,000 at two elementary buildings. Upgrades include adding pea gravel under playground equipment to provide more cushion. The district also bought two water heaters for one building so that hot water will be available at all sinks.

“I’m never going to balk at anything that compromises the safety of our kids,” said Ottawa Superintendent Kevin Brinkman. “If we have another set of eyes that come out to our buildings and say, ‘You can be a little bit safe,’ I’m going to do it.”

The Legislature passed “Jarod’s Law” in 2005.

Jarod Bennett died two years earlier after a 290-pound table being wheeled by another child tipped over and fractured the boy’s skull in a school gymnasium in Lebanon, about 25 miles north of Cincinnati.

The boy’s parents began pushing for school safety inspections after learning that the Consumer Product Safety Commission warned of the dangers of the design of the cafeteria tables a decade before their son died.

Enforcers

Local health departments are supposed to begin enforcing the law this fall.

Randy Crossley, supervisor of plant operations for schools in Lima, said the district might need another full-time employee to keep up with the law’s requirements.

He said the district now will need to inspect its roofs after hard rain, lightning or other bad weather. It normally inspects the roofs once or twice a year.

“Technically, every time we have a storm, we have to go inspect another 600,000 square feet of roofs,” he said. “It takes a lot of time.”

Schools also must limit exposure to diesel fumes from buses.

“Bus drivers will have to pull up in front of the school, shut the motor off, load the kids, start the buses back up and go to the next site,” Crossley said. “This is going to be hard on the starters and so forth. The wear and tear on the buses is going to increase.”

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