Chemicals Released From SF Jail Left Nearby Children Sicker Than First Reported

Portola Elementary School students sickened by chemicals released during a training exercise at a nearby San Bruno jail last week experienced more severe symptoms than were initially reported, with some even requiring emergency medical care, according to the school district superintendent.

The chemical agents, including pepper spray and 2-chlorobenzylidene malononitrile, a common form of tear gas, were released during a crowd control and intervention training exercise on May 21 at the San Francisco County Jail in San Bruno, according to the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office. They reached Portola Elementary School, about half a mile away.

Officials initially reported that 20 students and one teacher were sickened. However, nearly 30 students reported symptoms such as watery eyes, coughing, wheezing and trouble breathing at the time of the incident, San Bruno Park School District Superintendent Matthew Duffy said in a statement on Thursday. The school later determined that over the following days, students experienced more severe symptoms, including upset stomach, vomiting and rashes.

“More than a week later, we still have some students who are suffering adverse effects from the exposure to the tear gas and pepper spray dispersed into the air that day,” Duffy said in a statement to KQED.

During a two-hour town hall meeting with school officials and the sheriff’s office on Tuesday night, parents criticized a lack of communication after the chemical exposure, saying they pieced together what had happened only after multiple wrote in an online forum that their children were experiencing similar symptoms, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Parents also reported that the school did not take steps to clean surfaces on the exterior of the campus for two days and only did so after parents demanded it, according to the Chronicle.

Duffy said that after conversations with local law enforcement and environmental and academic agencies, the school washed down outside campus areas.

San Mateo County Supervisor David Canepa told KQED on Wednesday that the chemical agents released may have been expired.

“The chemical agent we used for the training does not have an expiration date, though we do use our oldest canisters for training purposes,” Christian Kropff, acting director of communications for the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office, said in a statement.

Canepa is considering calling a hearing over the incident and the larger practice of gas-related training.

“This requires transparency. This requires acknowledging that a mistake was made, but most importantly, making sure that it doesn’t happen again by putting in the correct protocols,” he told KQED.

The school district plans to write a letter to the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office asking that all gas-related training at the jail stop immediately, Duffy said.

“We appreciate the time the SF Sheriff’s department has dedicated to understanding the events of that day, and we look forward to a partnership that sheds light on any inappropriate actions taken as well as needed steps to remedy the situation,” Duffy said in his statement.