COVINGTON, Va. – Alleghany Highlands Public Schools released a statement Tuesday night after classrooms were relocated due to an unusual odor being detected at Covington Middle School.
AHPS said the following:
“Yesterday morning around 10:30 a.m., an unknown odor was reported on the third floor of Covington Middle School. The descriptions of this odor were consistent with the odor that was detected on January 31, 2025.
After investigating the smell, AHPS staff determined that the third-floor odor did not require a building evacuation. The Covington Police Chief and Emergency Manager also came to the building to assess the situation first-hand and independently determined that there was no immediate cause for action.
Nevertheless, teachers in nearby classrooms were allowed to move their classes to another location in the building if they felt it would help them or their students concentrate on coursework more effectively. A robocall was sent to parents to provide them with an update at approximately 11:20 a.m.
This morning, there were again a few reports of the odor returning, but it disappeared quickly and no further actions were determined necessary at that time."
In the statement AHPS said that Monday afternoon many concerned parents came to the school and checked students out for the day. They said as a result the attendance was lower for that day and the trend continued into Tuesday, with many families keeping students at home. This resulted in absence figures being significantly higher than usual.
AHPS said that the board met in a closed session to seek legal advice from counsel, and at this time, there are no other reports or informational updates to release.
Covington Middle School announced that they had temporarily relocated some classrooms after an unusual odor was detected in Covington Middle School on Monday. The school does not believe the incident is a safety concern.
The school told 10 News that they have an air quality specialist on site and issued the following statement in a call:
“This is Principal Karen Staunton from Covington Middle School. I am calling with an important update. This morning we once again detected an unusual odor on the third floor of our building. While we do not believe this to be a safety concern at this time, we have temporarily relocated affected classrooms to allow our air quality specialists to investigate further while our students and teachers remain focused on their curriculum.
“We will provide an additional update as soon as we have more information to share. Thank you for your continued patience and support as we work through this together.”
10 News will continue to update this story as we receive more information.
