Parents outraged after lead contamination found in 80% of fixtures at Fife elementary school

Lead contamination concerns are growing in Fife schools after state testing revealed extremely high levels in drinking fountains and faucets.

At Discovery Primary School, more than 80% of fixtures tested above the state’s action threshold.

Ephraim Almaraz, a father of a student at Discovery Primary, told KIRO 7 he was stunned to learn his young children had been drinking water with dangerously high lead levels.

“In discovery, the highest concentrations were in the kindergarten and first grade classrooms,” Almaraz said. “Those kids were using this water. They trusted it the way that we trust our infrastructure.”

Almaraz claimed he only found out about the high lead levels when his two young kids brought home notes to bring bottled water.

Fife School District, the district that Discovery Primary belongs to, told KIRO 7 that the state Department of Health — which was responsible for scheduling and conducting testing — did not schedule Fife schools until March and April of this year.

More than 220 schools statewide still have no testing data on record. The Department of Health blamed the delays in testing on the pandemic and staffing shortages, which both slowed testing.

Fife school officials additionally told Almaraz they did not intentionally delay testing.

Gerry Pollet, representative for Washington’s 46th District, said he’s outraged schools weren’t checked sooner.

“What parent sends their child to school to have them drink the water and lower their IQ?” Pollet said.

Pollet wrote House Bill 1139, which became state law in 2021, requiring testing for lead contamination in drinking water at all public K-12 schools built before 2016 or with plumbing replaced before 2016.

This is a developing story, check back for updates

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