Grava school complex stays shut as source of gas smell remains unknown

Checks find no leak, but the smell is unexplained

The Grava school complex in Athens remains closed while about 4,000 students follow lessons remotely, after a gas smell raised concern from mid-September. Technical checks from 9 to 11 October 2026 tested the strength and tightness of the internal gas pipework of the installations examined, including those serving the 40th Gymnasium and the 40th Lyceum of Athens and the central boiler room, and recorded no leak. Despite these results, the origin of the smell has not been identified, and no date has been set for students to return to classrooms. Any reopening depends on the report of the Technical Chamber of Greece (TEE), which had not yet been issued.

An installation that differs from its 2003 plans

Kathimerini reported that the gas installation had not been checked from 2003 until the Sunday before its report, and that a full check was carried out for the first time since it was installed. ICON Group, which inspected a complex of eight schools with more than 3,500 students, found "deviations between the existing internal installation and the study that was delivered to us". Athens Municipality's deputy mayor for technical services, Panagiotis-Paris Charlaftis, confirmed changes against the original 2003 permit, and said works such as insulation or replacement of components may have been carried out in the past without being fully recorded. A fitting is also missing from the connections of the 40th Lyceum and the Gymnasium, and its restoration is planned. Gas certificates cannot be issued until the deviations are recorded and addressed.

Thomas Georgiadis, the municipality's deputy mayor for education, pointed to missing paperwork:

The installation's plans are one thing and the plans the company has in its hands are another. The original gas connection was made in 2003. We do not know when these conversions were made inside the space, and the plans should be with the municipality.

1. 2003Gas installation permit based on the original study
2. Mid-September 2026First concerns raised over the gas smell
3. Oct 9, 2026Technical checks begin
4. Oct 11, 2026Technical checks end with no leak found in tested pipework
5. Oct 13, 2026Technical Chamber of Greece expert inspection scheduled

Remote lessons and the ministry's role

Education Minister Sofia Zacharaki, speaking on SKAI TV on Tuesday, 13 October, said the municipality is responsible for the school buildings and decisions on their operation, while the ministry is responsible for teaching staff, equipment and continuity of lessons. Remote teaching will continue until the procedures are completed, and she acknowledged that distance learning cannot replace daily classroom presence. She also said the ministry had begun arrangements to receive the presidents of the 15-member student councils. A Technical Chamber of Greece expert, accompanied by engineers from KTYP SA (Building Infrastructure SA), which is supervised by the Ministry of Infrastructure, was due to inspect the site that day. A large energy upgrade is underway at the complex, which Zacharaki put at about 8.5 million euros including VAT under the Attica Region's 2021-2027 programme, with completion set for January 2028. Government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis gave a figure of 8.7 million euros including VAT and said the project has been under way since last year.

Municipality calls and parents' concerns

The Athens Municipality said a secondary check it completed on Sunday evening found no leak, but that the origin of the smell remains unclarified. It called on the Ministry of Education to instruct the TEE to carry out the necessary checks, and on the Ministry of Civil Protection to take the steps needed to establish the cause. Marizza Kitani, president of the parents' association of Athens' 5th community district, said parents want answers:

We want to find out what it is our children are breathing. Even if it is not a natural gas leak and is something else, why are serious technical works being carried out at the school complex at this moment?

Until the final certificates are issued, classes at the Grava complex will continue remotely.