More than 300 students from West Side Elementary School have been temporarily transferred to other schools within the Cold Spring Harbor School District after an electrical fire at West Side on March 10 caused extensive damage. The school was unoccupied at the time of the fire, and no injuries were reported.
As West Side Elementary School undergoes repairs, second graders have moved to the Goose Hill School. Students in grades three through five are now at Lloyd Harbor School, and sixth graders have been assigned to the Junior and Senior High School.
While no timeline has been set by the district for West Side’s reopening, school officials are optimistic about the rate of repairs.
Cold Spring Harbor Superintendent Joseph Monastero said he was pleased with the progress and that new ceiling tiles and LED lighting have already been installed, adding that new flooring tiles will also be installed where needed.
Monastero said the school could potentially reopen within a matter of weeks, not months.
The damaged section of the school building, according to officials, boasts a rich history spanning over 230 years. Legend has it that George Washington visited the site in 1790 during the construction of the community’s first schoolhouse and even helped to raise one of the initial rafters.
