Roof Concerns Addressed

Editor's note: The Mendon-Upton Regional School District announced on Wednesday night that schools would be closed for the rest of the week as an outside contractor removes heavy snow from the buildings' roofs. Public concern prompted the district to reevaluate the state of the roofs, and though there has been no evidence of structural damage, Mendon/Upton officials have determined it best to keep kids out of the schools until the snow is removed. In light of the neighboring district's decision, and recognizing the concern for roofs across the region, Milford Superintendent Robert Tremblay provided media outlets Tuesday night with the following statement: 

Given the mounting public interest in the condition of school roofs because of the accumulation of snow and ice, I wish to report that:

• All Milford Public School buildings have had major roof work done over the past (7) years and are reported to be in top condition;

• The superintendent remains in constant contact with the Milford Public Schools facilities manager, who has been working over the past weeks with the Milford fire chief and highway surveyor to deal proactively with the removal of snow on and around all Milford school buildings;

• The facilities manager and his staff have been and continue to be hands-on with the removal of snow, personally working to clear rooftop drains, reduce any remaining snow drifts and ice heaves, and create a network of spoke paths from the drains to the roof edges to reduce the overall roof loads;

• Heat from rooftop exhaust systems and direct sunlight have helped to melt much of the snow which is visibly draining and there continues to be a full-time effort to further reduce the build-up of snow on all school buildings;

• We will continue to relentlessly monitor all buildings for any leaks and will work with the Milford building inspector to ensure that our preventative actions to date have helped to head-off any issues.