Ceiling tiles fall on students at Whittier school; parents claim school tried to cover it up

WHITTIER, Calif. - Parents of students at a Whittier junior high school say they haven't been notified weeks after students were hit by a collapsing ceiling in the middle of class. The school says it notified parents of the students who were most affected, but parents say school officials tried to cover up the incident.

Ceiling collapses on students

What they're saying:

Ceiling tiles fell on students in English class at Rancho-Starbuck Intermediate School in Whittier earlier this month. Students took out their phones to record, showing several tiles on the floor, and a gaping hole in the ceiling. 

Concerned parents reached out to FOX 11 after they said they heard about the incident thanks to the community, not the school.

"It was mentioned by several students that if they had their cell phones out to please put [them] away, not to take pictures and so forth," said a parent of one student in the class. The class was interrupted on March 10, and that parent says that "to this day, us parents have not been notified of what has happened. Not a single thing."

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Julie Coehlo, a former teacher at the school, was the one who got her hands on the video of the ceiling failure. 

"The thought of something like this happening, and then being hidden, makes me concerned that something else, maybe more serious, is being hidden. Because, had I not had a parent reach out to me with this video, these parents wouldn't even know that this happened."

 School responds

The other side:

Lowell Joint School District Superintendent Jim Coombs told FOX 11's Hailey Winslow that swelling from heat caused the foam tiles in the ceiling to fall. In a statement Coombs emailed to FOX 11, he said that two of the students in the class were hit by the falling tiles, and that the school contacted those students' parents immediately. 

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The full statement read:

All of our campuses were built in the 1950's. Almost three weeks ago we had some 12'X12' lightweight foam like ceiling tiles fall in a standard English classroom while students were present. The teacher immediately contacted the principal and together they quickly confirmed that the falling lightweight tiles hit two students in the leg; no other students reported any concerns. The two students reported no injuries, but were checked out by health staff and indeed had no injuries nor needed treatment. Their parents were contacted right away to make sure they were aware and appreciated the communication. All other students moved to another classroom to complete their instruction and the classroom was closed for the remainder of the day.  Repairs were made overnight, the rest of the room was checked for any other concerns, and classes resumed the next day. We appreciate the trust and support of our families, the attentiveness of our staff, and the quick response of our maintenance team. Student safety and education are our top priorities and we are proud of our students, families and staff.

The school told FOX 11 that after the ceiling tiles fell, the students were moved to a different classroom, and repaired the ceiling in the original classroom overnight. They also checked the room for any other concerns before students were allowed back into the room the following day.

Other parents tell FOX 11 that they still have not heard anything from the school.