30 Students from Mapleton Middle School in Ashland, Ohio, were sent to the hospital on Friday after telling school staff that they felt sick.
According to Kurt Schneider, an Ashland County sheriff, one of the students fell ill and went to the medical room at approximately 10:20 a.m.
The student’s condition was subsequently assessed by the medical staff. A school resource worker was also made aware of the case.
Not long afterwards, several other students also reported feeling sick, with similar symptoms.
Schneider said many of them experienced dizziness, cough, tingling of the hands and feet, and lightheartedness, which are consistent with carbon monoxide poisoning or the common flu.
The school contacted emergency services, which responded to the scene. Upon arriving at the school, they assessed and transported about 30 students to local hospitals across the area.
Out of precaution, the middle and high schools in question were also evacuated.
Schneider said the sheriff’s office has been working with medical staff to get the latest updates on the students’ condition. He said nothing is being ruled out at this time.
He added that there is currently no evidence that the incident has any criminal elements and that there are no threats to the school, students, or staff at this time.
Initially, it was believed that the students had been exposed to carbon monoxide; however, the dive department had checked the school and given it the all clear.
Columbia Gas had also arrived at the school after responding to the scene, and determined there was no natural gas leak after performing a safety check.
Both school buildings have since been reopened.
Lexi Parks, the mother of a 12-year-old child, who was treated for symptoms at the middle school, said her daughter has since returned home from the hospital, though she is still recovering.
According to her mother, she was taken to a hospital in Medicine County, and her mother said she would not have known her whereabouts if she hadn’t known someone at the school.
Parks added that doctors at the hospital were unsure what her daughter was experiencing at the time.
Parks noted that even though many students showed the same symptoms, the school seemed to dismiss them as nothing more than panic attacks.
Still, several parents felt the district acted appropriately by evacuating the students from the building.
