After the suspicion of a smell of gas in Melgven, the town hall announces the reopening of the school

End of the suspense at the Paul-Gauguin school, in Melgven. After the investigations carried out by the firefighters and the technical teams following the discovery of a suspicious odor within the establishment on Thursday January 16 and Friday January 17, 2025, the town hall wanted to reassure the Melgvinois and particularly the families of children enrolled in this school group: the school will be able to reopen Monday January 20 in the morning.

The filling of the boiler in question

Thursday morning, concerned by a suspicious smell, school officials contacted technical services. Their manager attaches the papers who immediately move to the area and seal off the perimeter. “The children were evacuated to the multipurpose room but the various searches carried out throughout the day yielded no results,” recalls Matthieu Caplette, head of technical services.

The next morning, the smell persists. The school is closed again, the firefighters return and continue their investigations. “Fuel gases are the cause,” indicates the technical services manager. The origin is identified: “fuel oil gases escape from the boiler which had been refueled on Wednesday. As the tank is not full, gases trapped in the tank are evacuated through the conduits intended for this purpose… but due to the cold and the lack of wind, they remain hovering on the site,” continues Matthieu Caplette.

No worries, however the smell may persist for a few hours or a few days, say the firefighters. “This is the first time this has happened,” recalls Mayor Catherine Esvant. And… probably the last because the oil boiler will be replaced by a pellet boiler.