May 24, 2012
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- The new West Side Elementary has been open for several days with few problems, but there’s one problem that lies off school property.
The school itself has all the security you can imagine, but education officials say it's what's on the outside that needs some work.
Parents are doing extra duty of safety patrol. At least for now, Wendy Drake walks with her children, because there's nothing on the streets to show they’re part of a school zone.
“You send them to school; you don't wanna hear that one of them got hit by a car because of something minor,” Drake said.
“We do have a problem over there at the West Side Elementary. It's a busy intersection,” Kanawha County Board of Education President Pete Thaw said.
Board members say the city still needs to install flashing lights and signs. However, there has been progress. Crosswalks are already in the works.
“It was kind of scary with all the traffic, but they seem like they got everything in control,” Drake said.
After checking one item off the to-do list, board members are still wondering why all safety precautions weren’t followed before classes started.
“What would be more important than a child's life? Come on. Nothing's more important than this,” Thaw said. “It's a beautiful school -- state of the art technology, good teachers, everything. But we need some safety.”
Board members say they've been asking the city for these safety precautions for several weeks.
Charleston Mayor Danny Jones says there was just some miscommunication, and that those safety measures are now being taken.
The crosswalks were put in place Tuesday. The crew working on them says they'll be posting the signs Wednesday, and that flashing lights are in the near future.
|
Popular Searches Powered by Local.com |
