Officials say they aren’t sure what caused some students and staff at Eastern Greene Middle School to experience upper respiratory problems last weekend.
An “air quality hazmat incident” last week prompted the evacuation and closure of two schools. All air test results for harmful substances came back negative.
A Facebook post on the district’s page says the problem started when two students and three staff members complained of “upper respiratory problems” while in the library at Eastern Greene Middle School.
It says the school worked with Center-Jackson Fire Territory, Northern Monroe Fire Territory, the Indiana State Fire Marshal’s Hazardous Material Division and the Greene County Health Department to seal the library and check the air quality.
The post, signed by Interim Superintendent Carrie Milner, says the respiratory irritation people experienced could have been caused by the “use of a laminator in an improper [sic] vented room,” which could have released ozone.
“We understand that the community wanted more answers during this incident but we didn’t have the answers to give,” Milner wrote.
The post says the district will be meeting soon to debrief and go over the safety procedures utilized during the incident.
