School Evacuated For Smoke, But It Was Sewer Test

A harmless smoke that that came through the drain was the reason that was evacuated Tuesday.

The smoke is being sent through the county sewers as part of a sewer testing system designed to look for sewer leaks and possible points of overflow, said Baltimore County Public Works spokesman David Fidler.

The smoke is described as a non-toxic fog, according to the county government.

At about 11:45 a.m., a school employee saw the smoke coming through a drain in the kitchen area, said school secretary Jeri Baldwin. As a precaution, school officials pulled the fire alarm, evacuating the building.

The school was not notified of the test, Baldwin said.

The testing is part of a $1 billion infrastructure investment to improve the county sewer system, Fidler said.

The testing is completed by a contractor who is required under the contract to notify homes in the area that they are doing testing. It has been going on for roughly a year and moves through different parts of the county.

"The system is designed to find problems in the line and then fix them," he said. "It was never the intention to close the school because of smoke testing."