PLATTSBURGH -- Some Stafford Middle School students went to the nurse after an open door trapped coal-cleanup odors inside a stairwell.

Plattsburgh City School Superintendant James "Jake" Short said a handful of students complained about the fumes Wednesday morning after a downstairs door was briefly left open as students went out to gym class.

Fumes from the former Saranac Street manufactured-gas plant have been problematic in the past as crews work to clean up the site.

The school has implemented an array of safety precautions, including a charcoal air-filtering system, to help preserve the indoor-air quality.

"In this particular case, all of that is working, but the open door left a lingering odor in the stairwell," Short said Wednesday afternoon.

The nearby site has elevated levels of coal tar, which was a by-product of the gas that was produced at the plant in the early 20th century and used by area residents for cooking and lighting.

Though the odor posed only a brief problem in the stairwell, Short said, New York State Electric and Gas officials, who oversee the cleanup efforts, opted to shut down the operations as a precaution.

"Once that (the odor) was known, they shut it down, even though it was us leaving the door open. They erred on the side of caution and stopped what they were doing," Short said.

He said officials have been "very responsive" in trying to work with the community and school as the cleanup continues.

"We all want that site clean, and while that goes on we want to reduce everyone's exposure, so it's a catch 22, but reducing our exposure is more of a priority," Short said.

He said that after a few minutes, the odor in the stairwell was a "non-issue," but still prompted school and district officials to inspect the filtering system and look into the complaints.

"We stay really vigilant and monitor everything really closely. It's something we keep our attention to every day. The kids are our first priority, and so is the indoor-air quality."

E-mail Andrea VanValkenburg at:

avanvalkenburg@pressrepublican.com