Several Students Suffer Medical Emergency At Valley School

LOS ANGELES, CA — Several children at a San Fernando Valley school were sickened and hospitalized Wednesday morning, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Shortly before 11 a.m., paramedics were called to the Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies at 18605 Erwin Street. According to KTLA, paramedics treated seven children, five who were hospitalized. The other two children were reportedly released to their parents against medical advice. The children were experiencing symptoms of mild distress but were otherwise conscious and alert, KTLA reported.

According to Fox 11, some of the parents at the school said the children may have ingested marijuana edibles. However, authorities did not publicly confirm such reports.

Paramedics are required to transport juveniles to the hospital for medical treatment regardless of how mild the symptoms are if their parents can't be reached, according to the fire department.

Instances of mass student illnesses aren't entirely rare. In December, 10 Van Nuys junior high school students were treated for possible overdoses. In October, four high school students suffered simultaneous medical emergencies at Canoga Park High School.

In September, 15-year-old Melanie Ramos, died on the floor of a girls' bathroom on the campus at Bernstein High School in Hollywood after overdosing on fentanyl on Sept. 13. Her friend was found nearby suffering from an overdose. They were among a spate of seven fentanyl overdoses linked to a Hollywood campus in September. Since then, Los Angeles Unified School District officials and parents in the community have been on edge.