Jacksonville, FL — At least 39 Highlands Middle School students had to be taken to the hospital on Friday, after what the Duval County School district is calling a pepper spray incident.
According to the district, pepper spray was dispersed in the gym during a seventh grade PE class. We're told that teachers and staff immediately evacuated from the gym to the football field.
Law enforcement and rescue personnel were then contacted to help the students affected by the spray. In all, the district says at least 39 students were transported to five hospitals around the area. JFRD put the exact number at 41, while DCPS initially said 39.
Duval Schools Superintendent Dr. Diana Greene addressed Friday’s incident, saying everyone did what they were supposed to do.
“What I appreciate is that the staff moved immediately and that our police department responded immediately and our partnership with Jacksonville Fire and Rescue, they responded immediately. Everyone contacted the appropriate authorities to ensure that students who needed medical attention would have access to medical attention. Many of the 41 students, again, some of them were transported out of abundance of caution. I would much rather they come to a medical facility and really not have any injuries, then to not be here and later discover something might by wrong,” said Greene.
The school says the cause of this incident will be investigated and that the student code of conduct will be applied as appropriate.
The school police department says they have identified persons of interest and will be interviewing them on Monday.
READ: Phone call to Highlands Middle School
I'm calling to inform you that we had a pepper spray event today at school that impacted a large group of students and required a significant response of police and rescue personnel.
It appears that pepper spray was dispersed in the gym during seventh grade PE class. Teachers and staff immediately evacuated from the gym, to the football field.
Law enforcement and rescue personnel were called in to help control the situation and bring care to those students affected by the spray. We are in the process of reaching out personally to all families of students who appear to be suffering from any of the effects of the spray. Many are being transported to hospitals. Again, we are working to contact parents of those students directly.
As you know, pepper spray is a prohibited item and we will investigate the cause of this incident and apply the student code of conduct as appropriate. For now, we are returning to school as normal while contacting families and providing care to affected students.
If your child has seventh grade physical education during 5th period, please reach out to the school, and we will inform you if your student is safely in class or if he or she is getting medical attention. Again, if your child has seventh grade physical education during __ period, please reach out to the school if we haven't connected with you already.
I'm sorry that our students had to endure this disruption today, and as with any incident like this, I want to make sure that you are aware. Please don't hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions or input about anything having to do with your child's experience here at Highlands Middle.