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A third-party testing sample taken at the Davis R-12 School District in Henry County shows chemical contaminant levels above Missouri's accepted regulated value.
This follows widespread community outcry over the fly ash deposits from Evergy's former coal plant site in Montrose.
RELATED | Henry County community voices concerns over former Evergy plant
Back in November, a Henry County couple conducted an independent test on their property and the school district for hazardous chemicals. They filed a lawsuit against Evergy and included testing results from Triangle Environmental Science and Engineering.
According to the documents, those testing results showed chemicals that exceeded the regulated accepted levels for radium, cobalt, arsenic, lead and hexavalent chromium, which is known to cause cancer.
The lawsuit alleges Evergy is improperly discarding its fly ash waste at the former coal plant in Montrose, causing the high levels of chemical contaminants. Evergy hosted a town hall meeting with Henry County residents denying the allegations and pledging to work with county leaders to determine the source.
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) conducted testing at the Montrose facility in January. The DNR published a summary of the findings in February claiming there were no concerning levels of chemical contaminants except for arsenic, which is a naturally occurring heavy metal. The actual report has not been released.
KSHB 41 News obtained the results from a second independent test conducted at the end of February. The superintendent of Davis R-12 School District hired OCCU-TEC, a Kansas City-based company, to test for chemical contaminants, including hexavalent chromium, within the school and on the grounds.
"Concentrations of chemicals of concern were noted in both surface wipe samples and soil sediment samples above the regulatory values referenced in this report," the document states.
Researchers took surface wipe samples at the main entrance, west entrance and south entrance of the school as well as the HVAC louver in Classroom 2. Barium, total chromium and sulfate were detected above laboratory reporting limits in these samples.
The hexavalent chromium sample results from the surface wipe tests have not been received and are still pending.
OCCU-TEC also took soil sediment samples from the school district's drainage ditch, the east side of the school building, the playground, the gutter of the Morton building, the corner of the Morton building and the corner of the western storage building.
Hexavalent chromium, arsenic, lead, cobalt, barium, boron, cadmium, total chromium, lithium and sulfate were all detected above laboratory reporting limits in the soil samples collected at the school.
READ MORE | Full OCCU-TEC results
The testing company recommended further soil sediment testing at the school building and on the grounds.
Students and faculty at Davis R-12 School District will continue to have classes at an off-site location. Mark Larson, Henry County's north district commissioner, explained the district has not been on campus since concerns were first raised in early 2025.
"This is a really big deal," Larson said. "It doubles the seriousness when you've got [these chemicals] on playgrounds and schools with kids in it."
Larson told KSHB 41 News the county is conducting its own independent testing.
"Anytime, anything, it doesn't matter what it is, involves kids, then you've got the heart strings of everybody down here," Larson said.
Last week, samples were taken from Evergy's site in Montrose, the Davis School campus, the lake and nearby creeks. The results for arsenic, lead, cobalt, barium and sulfate are expected to be released within the next two weeks, but results for hexavalent chromium can take up to five weeks to be determined.
RELATED | Henry County woman worried for her 3 children amid county's fly ash concerns
"We need to find out what it is, where we're at with this because it's not going away," Larson said.
So far, two third-party testing results show higher than acceptable levels of chemical contaminants, including hexavalent chromium, in Henry County.
"The people are pretty upset," Larson said. "They're hearing we've got all these bad tests coming and everyday, every 10-15 minutes they're seeing a truck go by with fly ash in it."
Resident Chace Larson explained there is not a lot of community trust in the testing results from Evergy and Missouri DNR.
"My assumption would be Evergy's and DNR's are going to line up pretty close and everybody else's will be the exact opposite," Chace Larson said. "If the [county results] are bad, the county needs to do everything in their power to protect, reimburse and help the people of this county."
It's a long road ahead with testing and finding the potential source of chemical contaminants.
"Even if somebody takes the blame for it, then you've got to clean it up," Larson said. "That could be years."
Missouri DNR responded to KSHB 41's request for comment with a statement.
"The Missouri Department of Natural Resources received the report you referenced over the weekend and we are currently reviewing the information in the report," a spokesperson stated.
Evergy said the utility could not comment on the report results as it was not provided the testing results.
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