West Virginia school ordered to remain open after effort to close it due to toxic groundwater fears

PADEN CITY, W.Va. (AP) — A small West Virginia school will remain open after a judge sided with residents who fought a decision to relocate classes due to contaminated groundwater in the town being on a national cleanup priority list. News outlets report a judge ordered Paden City High School to be reopened immediately. Last month, Wetzel County’s schools superintendent announced that classes would be relocated to existing schools in nearby New Martinsville in August. Attorneys representing a community residents then filed a petition to block the move. Judge Richard Wilson issued a preliminary injunction Wednesday. The petition argued that the federal government did not recommend closing the school because there was no health risk.