Fort Mill students face makeup days after Silfab Solar chemical leaks

FORT MILL, S.C. — Fort Mill students who missed school because of chemical leaks at Silfab Solar are learning they’ll have to make those days up.

Channel 9’s South Carolina reporter, Tina Terry, learned that leaders are trying to avoid bringing kids back during summer break.

School leaders are still talking about the possibilities.

One idea is to bring kids back on a Saturday and to have them attend a full day on the last day of school.

“I was pretty surprised and definitely feel like we’re being punished for something that was out of our situation,” said parent Bethany Sweatt. “The other schools weren’t having to deal with it.”

Sweatt learned that her first grader may have to make up two days before the end of the school year. She and other students at Flint Hill Elementary missed classes after two chemical leaks were found at Silfab Solar in early March.

School leaders learned students may have to make those days up.

“Those marked days are Memorial Day, which takes place just before the end of the school year,” said Joe Burke, Fort Mill Schools public information officer. “And then June 1 is actually the first teacher workday after the school year is over. Both of those are marked as possible weather makeup days on our calendar.

However, leaders proposed an alternative to the school board that would let kids make up the two days on Saturday, April 25, and it would make the last day of school on Friday, May 29, a full day rather than a half day.

Board members decided to table the decision until they can talk about this more.

The fight against Silfab continues.

York County officials and neighbors will be in court in May in the appeal case over a board of zoning appeals decision.

It said Silfab was not properly zoned for the site.

The Board of Zoning Appeals made that call in 2024, saying that solar panel manufacturing didn’t fit in an area zoned as light-industrial zoning.

However, York County claimed the decision would only apply to future projects.

VIDEO: Protesters demand revocation of Silfab Solar’s occupancy permit