6 Elementary School Kids Sickened Amid Hazardous Materials Incident

MORENO VALLEY, CA — Firefighters responded to an elementary school in Riverside County where six children were affected by an odor thought to be a gas leak, a Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department spokesperson told Patch.

Just before 9:15 a.m., firefighters were called to the 24800 block of Delphinium Avenue, in Moreno Valley. There, students at the Chaparral Hills Elementary School was emptied from at least one classroom shortly after teachers smelled what they thought was gas.

The Hazardous Materials Team, Southern California Gas and AMR were called to the scene, according to Cal Fire spokesperson Tawny Castro. Six students received medical care on site.

"Firefighters arrived at the scene of a reported gas leak," Castro said. "The first arriving unit made contact with an initial five patients in the office and declared a 'Multi Patient Incident' had taken place."

After a thorough investigation of the property, no gas leak was found, and a total six patients were evaluated and declined to be transported to hospitals for further treatment. No other people inside the school reported symptoms or signs of illness.

All Cal Fire units were released by 11:30 a.m.

"The gas company checked the rest of the property as a precaution," they said. No other information on what caused the incident was immediately available.