Newington School to Reopen Saturday
Ruth Chaffee Elementary School received an envelope with white powder.
Friday, May 11, 2012 | Updated 2:57 PM EDT
NBC Connecticut
Police block off the road outside Ruth Chaffee Elementary School in Newington after an envelope containing white powder was discovered in the school's main office Thursday.
The Ruth Chaffee Elementary School in Newington will re-open Saturday, two days after a letter containing a white powder was found inside.
Two members of the school’s administrative staff came into contact with the powder when they opened an envelope on Thursday and the school called police and the fire department at 2:04 p.m. Neither of the two people exposed exhibited any signs of medical distress, but the school was evacuated as a precaution.
Newington's school superintendent said the school will open Saturday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. to allow parents and children to return and retrive any belongings that were left behind when the building was evacuated.
The school remained closed while tests were done on the white powder, but classes will go on as scheduled Monday, according to the superintendent. The missed day will not have to be made up, since Newington schedules 181 days in its school calendar. The state only requires a 180-day schedule.
On Thursday, five ambulances, police and firefighters responded to the scene and a decontamination unit was set up.
The FBI, U.S. Postal Inspector, Capitol Region Bomb Squad, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Central Connecticut Health District, and Newington and AMR EMS services are involved in the investigation.
About an hour after the Chaffee school was evacuated, the Keeny Street Elementary School in Manchester was placed on lockdown after receiving a letter containing white powder and a message about al-Qaida.
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