Plum School District officials said they have received "a handful" of complaints that youngsters at Pivik Elementary School have had some health problems during the construction of a new roof.

But officials said earlier this week that no one has asked to be moved to another school during the construction, which started last month and is expected to continue through mid-November.

District spokeswoman Dawn Check said some pupils have complained of nausea, headaches and increased problems with asthma because of the smell of tar.

"We've had a small number of complaints -- less than 10," Plum School Board member Paul Olijar said. "The tar smell may aggravate pre-existing conditions. If (pupils) wanted to be moved, we would move them."

There are about 500 pupils at Pivik.

Amid the health complaints, some parents said they expected their children to have problems but that they have been fine.

Sue Anderson of Dinwiddie Drive said she was worried her son, Caleb, 9, a fourth-grader at Pivik, would have problems during the roof project.

But to her surprise, Caleb, who she said has allergies and receives shots once a week, has been OK.

"I was concerned," Anderson said. "My husband is in construction, and I was worried about how strong the tar smell would be. But Caleb hasn't said one word about it."

District officials said AGX Inc. continues to monitor the air quality during the project. As of last week, the air quality levels were within acceptable limits.

Water has leaked into the cafeteria and gymnasium and limited the use of the gym. Pivik, which has served as a high school, junior high and elementary school, was built in 1939 and remodeled in 1954 and 1988. The cafeteria was built in 1973.

The school board in August approved a $624,045 roof replacement project at the elementary school on School Road, $374,045 more than the $250,000 the district had budgeted for the job.

The cost increased because of the extent of leakage from the roof and the discovery of asbestos. Inhalation of asbestos fibers has been linked to lung ailments.

Pennsylvania Roofing Systems Inc. of Richland was hired to do the work.

Check said the asbestos abatement work is being done after school. But the roof work has to be done during the day.

"Roof work is weather dependent," Check said. "(Roof) work cannot be done at night because in the fall, you have dew issues."

Karen Zapf can be reached at kzapf@tribweb.com or (412) 380-8522.