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Eleven Students Sent to Hospital After Pepper Spray Discharged at Ogden

By Mauricio Peña | October 1, 2014 1:01pm | Updated on October 1, 2014 7:25pm
 Students taken to the hospital after an irritant accidentally discharged at Ogden International High School, officials said.
Students taken to the hospital after an irritant accidentally discharged at Ogden International High School, officials said.
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DNAinfo/Mauricio Pena

CHICAGO — During an emergency LSC meeting Wednesday night at Ogden International School, an LSC member confirmed 11 students were taken to the hospital by ambulance after pepper spray was discharged in one of the classrooms earlier in the day.

Members and school officials discussed and voted on the implementation of a new metal detector scheduled to be delivered by mid-day Thursday. The detector is scheduled to be fully functioning by Friday as recommended by CPS' Safety and Security Department.

After an investigation, the 10th-grade student responsible for the incident was not found to have "malicious intent," said one LSC member.

At the time of the incident, officials said 14 students were taken to the hospital after a student accidentally discharged pepper spray in the school on Wednesday, officials said.

The incident occurred around 10 a.m. at Ogden's West Campus, 1250 W. Erie St., which houses students from fifth through 12th grade.

Chicago Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said a student accidentally discharged "some form of irritant" at the school Wednesday. Fire officials later found a cannister of pepper spray at the school.

A total of 14 students between the ages of 13 and 15 were transported to the hospital as a precaution, Fire Department Paramedic Field Chief Rich Raney said.

The students were in excellent condition, Langford said.

Later Wednesday, David Ramos, vice chairman of the Ogden Local School Council, said an emergency meeting had been scheduled for 6 p.m. at the school to discuss security and determine how the student was able to bring pepper spray into the school. While the school has metal detectors, not all of them have been installed, he said.

Marta Nakonechny, a senior who was in one of the two classrooms evacuated, said the incident happened during third period.

"We were across the hall from where it happened," Nakonechny said. "They kept us in our fourth-period class until the fire department said it was safe."

Said Jasmyne Wells, a freshman: "My throat is still scratchy."

Several parents and guardians came to the school to take their students home after being alerted by a robocall.

The automated message issued by CPS alerted parents that an incident at the campus had occurred, and that the hazmat crew and fire department were looking into the incident. No other information was given, said a parent, who asked not to be named. 

A parent of a hospitalized child later went to the school to seek answers but was frustrated after school officials would not disclose what happened.

"A lot of parents are very upset," said Bobbie Lee, a grandmother of a high school student who rushed to pick up her granddaughter after learning about the incident.

"Students said it smelled like gasoline and that some students were throwing up," Lee said.

"How did the kid get into the school with that? This is very serious," Lee added.

CPS spokesman Bill McCaffrey said Wednesday: “School officials were alerted to an accident involving pepper spray at Ogden International School this morning. The administration acted swiftly and worked with the Chicago Fire Department to ensure student safety."

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