Hundreds of students at Waiakea Intermediate and Waiakea Elementary schools briefly evacuated their campuses Thursday after some caught a whiff of a “lingering chemical smell.” ADVERTISING Hundreds of students at Waiakea Intermediate and Waiakea Elementary schools briefly evacuated their campuses
Hundreds of students at Waiakea Intermediate and Waiakea Elementary schools briefly evacuated their campuses Thursday after some caught a whiff of a “lingering chemical smell.”
Waiakea Elementary’s roughly 845 students evacuated at 1:20 p.m. because of the odor “around campus and in some classrooms,” Principal Ken Watanabe said in an email.
Hawaii Fire Department arrived shortly after the evacuation, and the campus was deemed safe about 35 minutes later, Watanabe said. Students remained out front until dismissal at 2:20 p.m.
Crews were not able to determine the source of the odor but think no hazard was present, Battalion Chief Gerald Kosaki said. The department thinks the smell could have been an herbicide.
“It happens every so often, when someone sprays weed killer around, depending on the wind direction, the smell might linger and people might smell an odor,” Kosaki said. “Sometimes we can find the person who’s spraying it, and sometimes we cannot.”
Kosaki said the evacuation was a precautionary measure. No one exhibited symptoms of chemical exposure or was transported to the hospital, he said. School resumed as usual Friday.
Waiakea Elementary generated an automated call later that day to inform parents about the event, followed by a letter that went home with students Friday.
Waiakea Intermediate officials did not immediately return calls Friday.
Email Kirsten Johnson at kjohnson@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
