Police release chemical cloud; 30 children in California fall ill

Authorities said nearly 30 children and one adult were sickened last week when a cloud of tear gas and pepper spray used during a police exercise in the area headed toward a nearby elementary school in San Bruno, California.

According to San Bruno Park School District Superintendent Matthew Duffy, nearly 30 students at Portola Elementary School reported symptoms including coughing, watery eyes, wheezing and difficulty breathing at the time of the incident. There were also reports of vomiting and rashes.

“More than a week later, some students are still suffering from the effects of the tear gas and pepper spray that was in the air that day,” Duffy said. “It is now well documented that some families required emergency medical assistance to support their children who were suffering from the effects of the gas in the air.”

The San Francisco Sheriff’s Office, which oversaw the May 21 crowd control exercise and launched an investigation into the incident, has apologized to the students and their families, as well as faculty.

But Duffy said the district would send an “official letter” to sheriff authorities demanding that all “gas-related” training be stopped at the facility, which is less than a half-mile from the school.

Tara Moriarty, spokeswoman for the sheriff’s office, said Bay Area law enforcement agencies have been conducting training at the site for more than 20 years.

“This is an unprecedented situation that we take very seriously,” she said.

But parents were even more concerned this week when the San Francisco Chronicle reported that some of the chemical containers used in the exercise dated back to the 1960s.

The San Francisco County Sheriff’s Office said a preliminary investigation into the incident found that the canisters brought by the UC Berkeley Police Department and used for training did not have expiration tabs.

“However, we believe these canisters were taken from the warehouse,” Moriarty said.

She did not provide any information about how long the canisters had been stored.

She said it was common for law enforcement agencies to use stockpiled products for training exercises and that “there appears to be no greater health risk than using the same product that was manufactured more recently.”

However, experts say there are few studies that examine the long-term health and environmental impacts of tear gas.

The two-hour, multi-agency crowd control training course took place in a remote area of ​​the San Francisco County Jail in San Bruno on May 21. It was just before 1 p.m. when the drill required officers to use tear gas and pepper spray in a training building.

However, the cloud of tear gas and pepper spray did not remain inside the building, but reached the nearby elementary school.

Moriarty said that following the incident, the sheriff’s office has suspended all future training exercises as it reviews its current procedures to ensure the community is not put at risk.

The San Mateo County Environmental Health Service said in a statement that it was investigating the incident.

“Although there is no evidence of ongoing environmental hazards at the site or in the surrounding area,” the agency wrote, “the investigation will determine whether all reporting requirements to the appropriate authorities were met following the incident and whether appropriate emergency plans were in place to prevent a release.”

Since the incident, Duffy said the school district has been washing down the school’s outdoor areas for safety reasons. School officials also continue to collect information about the health of the students and adults affected that day. The district also held a town hall meeting with Sheriff Paul Miyamoto to address community concerns.

“We will also be writing an official letter to the SF Sheriff’s Department demanding the immediate termination of all gas-related training at the facility,” Duffy noted. “We appreciate the time the SF Sheriff’s Department has spent understanding the events of that day and look forward to a partnership that sheds light on any inappropriate actions taken as well as the necessary steps to remedy the situation.”