Jackson Heights Post
Classrooms in nearly 50 different elementary schools in Queens tested positive for lead, according to new data released by the Department of Education Wednesday night.
Inspectors hired by the DOE found lead-based paint in 48 borough schools where children below the age of six study, according to the data. Many of the schools have multiple classrooms where peeling lead paint was found.
In total, the department inspected 797 school buildings across the city built prior to 1985 that house students younger than six years old. More than a third of the pre-K and kindergarten buildings, 302 schools, tested positive for lead, according to Chalkbeat.
Deteriorating lead paint is especially dangerous to young children who may breathe in lead dust or swallow paint chips. According to the CDC, lead poisoning can cause damage to the brain and nervous system, learning and behavioral problems, slowed growth and development and hearing and/or speech issues.
