ADAMS TWP — Something is rotten in the elementary school at Mars — at least the school smells that way.

Responding to complaints of a “foul, musty” odor, officials at Mars Elementary took steps this week to identify and eliminate the source.

In a letter sent home Wednesday to district parents and guardians, Superintendent Wes Shipley explained the situation and the school’s steps in dealing with it. Shipley emphasized that there was no known health risk and that tests were being conducted to rule out the possibility of any hazardous condition.

“When notified of the issue, the district took two immediate steps,” Shipley wrote:

n“Because we experienced a similar odor when bats were found to be roosting in the penthouse section of the building two years ago, we contacted the exterminator to return and look to see if we have the same problem again; and “we engaged our maintenance crew to search for the cause of the smell and to take action to correct the problem.”

The search turned up wet insulation near the fresh-air intake vent of an air handler, which maintenance workers immediately turned off. They removed the insulation, then cleaned and disinfected the duct, Shipley wrote.

The air handler was turned back on to dry the vent after students were dismissed at the end of the school day.

Shipley added that after the insulation had been removed, teachers and staff reported the issue to be “noticeably improved or even gone.”

The district has ordered air samples to be taken as a precaution, Shipley wrote, noting there is no evidence of mold or mildew.

“We expect to receive those results by Friday,” he added.