Specialist team to remove chemical from school

A specialist team has been called in to Westray Junior High School to assist with the disposal of a chemical currently in safe storage at the school.

A small quantity of white phosphorous has been held under strictly risk assessed and controlled conditions for many years in Westray, according to Orkney Islands Council (OIC) — with no cause for concern to the school or the wider community.

It is no longer used in the school curriculum, so the time has come to remove it.

Due to the complexity of safely moving white phosphorous , this requires specialist support — and a team is in Orkney today to carry out the removal.

The council has assured that the process does not carry significant risk to the school or the community, and the school is expected to remain open throughout.

OIC’s safety and resilience team is coordinating the removal of the chemical. 

Hayley Green, OIC director of infrastructure and organisational development, said: “We cannot stress strongly enough that people should not be overly concerned about this — the white phosphorous has been stored in the school for many years and kept safe all that time.  

“We are simply letting people know as we are well aware that the arrival of a specialist team on the island will attract interest and attention in the community.”