Football Players Burned by Misused Disinfectants

Fifteen students on the Springbrook High School football team reportedly suffered first- and second-degree burns or rashes caused by misuse of a powerful disinfectant.

One student was hospitalized for three days.

The Silver Spring high school’s football coaches ordered the locker room to be sprayed with a disinfectant when they thought one of the players had come down with a staph infection, according to The Washington Post. When the staph infection was a false alarm, parents were not notified of the possible outbreak or that the locker room and football equipment had been covered with Virex II 256.

The chemical is meant for non-porous surfaces, but football pads have both porous and permeable material. School Principal Sam Rivera tells the Post using the chemical on the football equipment was a mistake.

Partway through practice on Sept. 16, students complained of a burning sensation, WTOP reports.

Defensive lineman Matthew Robinson spent three days in the hospital because his burns became infected, the Post reports. He is out for the season.

“You injured my child by negligence, so I’m going to let the legal system handle it,” Robinson’s mother, Chimene Jules, told the Post. “The parents’ concerns and questions need to be answered, and that would take away a lot of the frustration.”

No comment has been made on whether or not anyone has been fired or suspended because of the incident.

>>Patch File Photo

===========

Have a news tip? Email deb.belt@patch.com. You can also post your own news, events and announcements on Patch by following these directions. Curious about how our new commenting platform, Disqus, works? Learn more about it here and start interacting with your neighbors on Patch.