Pumpkin spice air freshener prompts evacuation of school
An unusual smell prompted an evacuation and a hazardous materials response at Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Baltimore.
Five people were taken to the hospital complaining of upset stomachs, which is when fire officials discovered the source of the smell - a pumpkin spice air freshener.
Cristo Rey Jesuit High School was evacuated Thursday afternoon after students and teachers detected a strong smell on the third floor. Several people reported difficulty breathing.
According to officials two students and three adults were taken to the hospital, however their injuries were unknown, according to Baltimore News.
The fire department and a hazardous materials team were called. Fire spokesman Roman Clark said two students and three adults were taken to the hospital for stomach ailments.
Firefighters located a pumpkin spice air aerosol plugged into an outlet in a classroom.
'This plug-in air freshener that basically puts out the odor every so many seconds, and it's a pumpkin spice, and that's exactly what, if you go in there, you can smell, so it has been identified.
'It is not hazardous at all,' Baltimore Fire Chief Roman Clark said.
President of the school, Bill Heiser, said some students were struggling to breathe.
'At first, they thought, perhaps, it was a burned-out light bulb, and that was the cause of the smell,' Heiser said.
However, Heiser did say he was skeptical about the air freshener being the cause: 'What they did is also, as a precaution, they used fans to kind of circulate the air, and when they circulated the air, they did smell an air freshener.
'We don't know that that's the cause. It certainly wouldn't be uncommon to blow an air freshener and then get that smell,' Heiser said.
The school posted a statement on their website: 'At approximately 2:30 p.m. today, students on the third floor of Healy Hall reported a strange odor. Principal Reap activated the School Emergency Plan and students and staff were safely evacuated.'
'Once outside, students were provided access to restrooms and water. Emergency personnel, including the HAZMAT team of the Baltimore City Fire Department, quickly arrived to assess the safety of our students and the building.'
'Emergency medical technicians evaluated several staff members and students, some of whom were treated on the scene. Five members of our community were transported to area hospitals as a precautionary measure. After extensive testing, the BCFD determined that the building was safe,' they stated.
Classes were resumed Friday and everyone involved appears to be safe.