Continuous Improvement

Air Handling Upgrades

New Report Leads to Building Enhancements at Covington Middle School:

Based on prior recommendations of experts, AHPS conducted an occupied building air quality assessment. The findings are now available. While the air quality meets all safety requirements, the assessment confirmed an opportunity to upgrade ventilation to improve flow of fresh air in the building. AHPS has made plans to install window-mounted ventilation units and will completely replace the RTU-4 air handler with a new, more efficient system. Work will begin later this month and continue through the summer with minimal disruption to instruction.

Current Status:

While multiple facility updates were completed prior to the return of students on March 18, 2025, the Alleghany Highlands School Board and district leadership are aware of lingering community concerns. Therefore, they have continued to pursue third-party assessments and expert recommendations to support the long-term health and comfort of the Covington Middle School community.

As recommended by Facility Dynamics in their March 3 report, AHPS engaged ECS Mid-Atlantic, LLC to conduct an Occupied Building Indoor Air Quality Assessment. The results of this assessment were released in the late afternoon of April 8, 2025. 

The report confirmed that the building meets safety requirements. However, it also revealed variations in air flow / ventilation quality in the building. The Alleghany Highlands School Board directed AHPS leadership to immediately procure a new air handling system to replace the RTU-4 unit and take advantage of the efficiency of newer equipment. This unit has been ordered and should be in place prior to the start of the fall semester. AHPS has also ordered temporary window units to improve air flow in affected classrooms. These will be installed upon arrival.

The latest ECS report is available below and our Frequently Asked Questions page has been updated with corresponding information.

Based on the latest available information, the Alleghany Highlands School Board has authorized the purchase of new equipment to improve air quality and ventilation and has directed staff to continue regular in-person instruction.

On January 31, 2025, a strong, unidentified odor was reported on the third floor of Covington Middle School. Several individuals in that area reported feeling unwell. Students and staff were moved to the Community Center, and EMS responded when two staff members reported symptoms. Students were later dismissed, and additional specialists were brought in to investigate the cause. Following this incident, students were moved to virutal instruction for several weeks while AHPS conducted  building testing in partnership with multiple state and local agencies and third-party private sector consultants.  On March 18, 2025, after all studies were completed, students and teachers returned to in-person instruction. The Alleghany Highlands School Board committed to implementing all recommendations as noted in the reports received from both ECS and Facility Dynamics the week of March 10, 2025. 

The first two weeks back were relatively uneventful, but similar odors were reported again the week of March 31, 2025 in the same area of the building. Emergency officials investigated and determined that no evacuation or closure was necessary.

Meanwhile, as recommended by Facility Dynamics, ECS conducted an occupied building indoor air quality assessment, taking samples on March 24 and March 31. Their findings were released on April 8, 2025. This report confirmed that the building was meeting indoor air quality safety requirements, but confirmed an opportunity to improve ventilation on the second and third floors.

Based on the most recent evaluation, Alleghany Highlands School Board has directed facilities improvements:

  • Replacement of the third-floor rooftop air handler (RTU-4) with a new high-efficiency unit
  • Installation of window-mounted ventilation units in select classrooms to support increased airflow and ventilation in the short term

Following the initial January 31 incident, a team of experts—including local fire and EMS, Roanoke Regional Hazmat, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), and the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM)—conducted a full investigation.

During this period, AHPS received unofficial reports of elevated carboxyhemoglobin levels in some individuals—a possible indicator of carbon monoxide exposure. To ensure a complete review of environmental and mechanical conditions, two independent firms—ECS Mid-Atlantic, LLC  and Facility Dynamics Engineering—were brought in to conduct expert assessments.

On February 1, VDH closed their investigation into CMS, determining there were no lingering public health concerns at CMS. 

On February 2, VDEM identified two mechanical issues in the first-floor kitchen:

  • An inefficiently burning stove, which was removed and the gas line capped; and
  • A malfunctioning exhaust fan, which was repaired. 

On February 5, VDH announced a broader investigation into a cluster of reports of elevated carboxyhemoglobin levels in the broader region. That investigation is ongoing.

As part of its commitment to continued monitoring, AHPS conducted follow-up indoor air quality testing in late March. These evaluations showed that indoor air quality remained well within OSHA standards, but confirmed opportunities to improve airflow and ventilation. As a result, AHPS approved two key upgrades: the full replacement of RTU-4 and the installation of window-mounted ventilation units in select areas.

On March 5, 2025, the Virginia State Fire Marshal’s Office conducted an initial inspection and made recommendations for building safety improvements. On March 14, 2025, the Virginia State Fire Marshal’s Office returned to conduct an inspection and reported no violations.

On March 18, 2025, students returned to in-person instruction.

On March 24 and 31, ECS collected additional air quality samples with the building now occupied as recommended by the Facility Dynamics study.

On April 10, 2025, the final ECS report dated April 8, 2025 was released. All technical assessments have been made available for download from this website.

New Reports

Technical Evaluations

ECS Mid-Atlantic, LLC (ECS) was hired to provide Alleghany Highlands School Board (AHSB) with Indoor Air Quality Testing Services performed at Covington Middle School located at 606 South Lexington Avenue in Covington, Virginia. This report summarizes their observations, analytical results, findings, and recommendations related to the work performed.

ECS Mid-Atlantic, LLC (ECS) was hired to provide Alleghany Highlands School Board (AHSB) with Indoor Air Quality Testing Services performed at Covington Middle School located at 606 South Lexington Avenue in Covington, Virginia. This report summarizes their observations, analytical results, findings, and recommendations related to the work performed.

Facility Dynamics Engineering (FDE) was hired to evaluate Covington Middle School’s building mechanical systems with a focus on performance, safety, and efficiency. The safety and efficiency aspect of this investigation focused primarily on the air side of the building’s mechanical systems. This report summarizes their observations, results, findings, and recommendations.

Incident Timeline

Friday, January 31, 2025
Covington Middle School receives a report of an unusual smell on the third floor of the school. Simultaneously, a few students and teachers report not feeling well.
Friday, January 31, 2025
CMS investigated the situation using standard response procedures: initial response was led by our custodial and maintenance staff.
When the source of the smell could not be identified, students, teachers, and staff were moved across the street to the community center to allow for a more complete evaluation.
During this relocation of students and teachers, one the staff members who had been helping to investigate the source of the smell became ill and an ambulance was called.
That staff member and one other were treated on the scene. One person was transported to the hospital for further evaluation.
Students were dismissed using standard procedures.
After the students and teachers were removed from the school, a variety of state and local response resources offered assistance with the building assessment and began arriving that afternoon. These community partners worked late into the night.
As of late Friday night, the source of the odor had not been identified. There were no indications of a natural gas leak. Several checks were completed with the assistance of the Virginia Department of Emergency Management and the Roanoke Valley Regional Hazardous Materials Team. There were no concerns with the boiler system and no concerns for sewer backup.
Saturday, February 1, 2025
AHPS released an update via a press release at 12:30 AM indicating appropriate follow-up investigations would continue through the weekend. AHPS staff would continue to check the building with the assistance of appropriate authorities.
Saturday, February 1, 2025
On Saturday, staff ran building systems in an attempt to recreate conditions from the previous day and planned to test again on Sunday.
Saturday afternoon, AHPS staff learned that VDEM and the Roanoke Hazmat team also planned to return on Sunday for additional testing.
School system leadership learned through continued community reports that additional parents and teachers were seeking medical support and carboxyhemoglobin testing.
Sunday, Feb 2, 2025
On Sunday, VDEM reported that they had identified two possibly related issues. They both involved mechanical equipment malfunctions in the cafeteria kitchen on the first-floor of the building.
Sunday, Feb 2, 2025
An older stove was reported to be burning inefficiently upon start up, and an exhaust fan had a loose belt resulting in less-than-optimal air flow.
A decision was made to immediately remove the stove and cap the corresponding gas line. This was completed the same day.
The belt for the exhaust fan was also repaired.
At this point, VDEM closed their investigation.
However, because the location of the malfunctioning equipment was relatively far from the third-floor reports that triggered the original investigation, school leaders decided to act out of an abundance of caution and investigate further. The Virginia Department of Health endorsed this decision.
Monday, Feb 3, 2025
School was closed.
Monday, Feb 3, 2025
An Alleghany Highlands school board meeting was held Monday Feb. 3, 2025 at the Middle School to provide an opportunity for the public to see inside the building for themselves.
Several teachers and CMS community family members attended and spoke out clearly about their safety concerns during public comment.
Tuesday, Feb 4, 2025
The Alleghany Highlands School Board met in a special work session and made the decision to keep the schools closed until an independent air quality and building systems engineering assessment could be completed.
Tuesday, Feb 4, 2025
Wednesday, Feb 5, 2025
When it became apparent that the additional air quality and building system inspection would take more time than originally anticipated, AHPS made the decision to move students to a virtual learning environment to limit learning loss.
Wednesday, Feb 5, 2025
Parents were notified that afternoon.
Monday, Feb 10, 2025
Students and teachers transitioned to virtual classroom instruction but continued to meet synchronously for each supervised class.
Monday, Feb 10, 2025
Tuesday, Feb 11, 2025 - Tuesday, Mar 17, 2025
Students, teachers, and staff transition to virtual learning.
Tuesday, Feb 11, 2025 - Tuesday, Mar 17, 2025
Two private engineering firms were hired by Alleghany Highlands School Board to conduct an air quality study and a mechanical equipment analysis.
The Alleghany Highlands School Board met in special session Wed. March 11 to consider the final air quality and mechanical systems reports. In this meeting, they directed staff to announce the the reopening of Covington Middle School the next week with a teacher workday scheduled for Monday March 17th and student return on a regular schedule March 18, 2025.
The Alleghany Highlands School Board also directed School Administration to implement all ancillary maintenance and upgrade recommendations as advised by the various subject matter experts as quickly as was responsibly feasible.
Tuesday, March 18, 2025
Students return to in person instruction at Covington Middle School.
Tuesday, March 18, 2025
Monday, March 31, 2025
An unknown odor was reported on the third floor of Covington Middle School. The description of this odor was consistent with the odor detected on January 31, 2025.
Monday, March 31, 2025
Following an investigation by AHPS Staff, as well as the Covington Police Chief and Emergency Manager, it was determined the odor did not require an evacuation.
Teachers were allowed to move classes to another location in the building to help students concentrate on coursework.
Parents were provided an update via robocall that morning.
Tuesday, April 1, 2025
The odor reportedly returned, but disappeared quickly. No further actions were deemed necessary. An email update was sent to parents that evening.
Tuesday, April 1, 2025
Friday, April 4, 2025
Odors return again—this time in three different areas of the building during the sixth period, triggering a building alarm. Families are notified via email later that evening.
Friday, April 4, 2025
Tuesday, April 8, 2025
The Alleghany Highlands School Board receives the assessment report with recommendations for expanded ventilation improvements.
Tuesday, April 8, 2025
Thursday, April 10, 2025
The Alleghany Highlands School Board holds a press conference to share the results of the assessment and provide an update on next steps for ventilation upgrades and continued monitoring.
Thursday, April 10, 2025