Fumigation at Thornton November 21-23, 2022

Dear Thornton Junior High Community,

As construction progresses on our site, our contractors and Facilities/Maintenance staff have discovered termites in some areas of our campus. Some staff and students may have noticed signs of termite activity in our classrooms and other spaces. 

While termites do not directly pose a danger to human health, they are a nuisance and can damage buildings and other wooden structures. 

Fremont Unified School District’s integrated pest management procedures, such as inspections and monitoring, are used to identify conditions contributing to pest problems and to determine when to control pests.

We have been working to temporarily address and mitigate the effects of the termites, but this is an issue we need to address with a long-term solution as soon as possible.

District staff and contractors have reviewed damage and options for next steps, such as sanitation, structural repair, and other non-chemical methods and, when nontoxic options are unreasonable or have been exhausted, pesticide. 

The extent of the current and potential damage caused by termites warrant the use of a pesticide on an emergency basis; the most effective treatment includes tenting the affected areas and fumigating with a pesticide. 

The school will be fumigated November 21-23, 2022. We are scheduling this work when students and staff will not be on campus for a number of days to allow enough time for tenting, treatment and preparation for reopening.

Thornton will reopen to specific District and site staff on November 26, and will be ready for all students and staff to return on Monday, November 28.

Staff will remove all consumables/food, plants and animals from impacted spaces before tenting. Students should remove any personal consumable/food items by Friday, November 18, 2022. 

This letter serves as a notice to inform you that a pesticide will be applied at the following site as described below:

School: Thornton Junior High School
Address: 4357 Thornton Ave., Fremont, CA 94536
Common Name of Pesticide Applied: Sulfuryl fluoride
Location(s) of the Pesticide Application: Buildings 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 23 portables
Date of Application: November 21, 2022
Reason for Emergency Pesticide Application: Drywood termites

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to address this issue. 

Sincerely,

Sherry Strausbaugh
Principal