“Unacceptably high” levels of radioactive waste were found at a Missouri elementary school, putting students at risk and forcing them to switch to virtual learning.

The board of the Hazelwood School District in St. Louis announced Tuesday that Jana Elementary School in Florissant, Missouri, will switch to virtual instruction. The move will allow enough time to redistribute students to other schools after the Thanksgiving break.

The committee apologized to parents for endangering their children and said it was doing everything in its power to remove the dangerous substances.

“To the students, staff and parents of the Jana School community: We understand that you are facing a situation that no one in this room caused and over which you have no control,” School Board President Betsy Rachel said in a packed meeting. “This is causing disruption to our students’ classes and school environment, for which we sincerely apologize.”

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The parents say they are angry because they were not told about the danger earlier.

“I can get a call about a crayon or a pencil, but I can’t get a call (about nuclear waste),” Kimberly Anderson, whose three grandchildren attend Jana Elementary, told the board at the meeting, according to NBC News.

“In August, after we gave you this news, you all decided not to share this with our community. … I did it. … Our PTA did it,” PTA President Ashley Bernaugh said at the board meeting, according to local television station NBC 5 KSDK.

Radioactive waste from World War II

Jana Elementary School is located near Coldwater Creek, an area that was contaminated in the 1940s and 1950s when radioactive waste from World War II weapons was dumped there. Last week, it was determined that radioactive levels at the site posed an “unacceptably high risk to the children.”

Contaminants were found in classrooms and the library, in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system, and in the playground and surrounding fields, according to a report by Boston Chemical Data Corp. The study, completed this month, was conducted on behalf of law firms involved in a class-action lawsuit – one of many seeking compensation for those who attribute illness or death to living near the creek.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, high levels of radiation exposure can increase the risk of cancer, while high levels of lead exposure can affect a child’s development and attention span.

The school – which is in a residential area surrounded by homes – opened in the 1970s and has educated thousands of children, said Christen Commuso of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment. “We’re talking about children who have been exposed to this for decades,” Commuso said.

Contributors: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: High concentration of radioactive waste found in Missouri elementary school