11 Hospitalized After Pool Chlorine Builds Up In Milwaukee School

MILWAUKEE, WI — Eleven students at St. Augustine Preparatory Academy were sent to Children's Wisconsin - Milwaukee Hospital after an unexplained mechanical failure caused an excess of chlorine to build up and deteriorated air quality in the school's swimming pool, a spokesperson for the school told Patch.

The children were exposed to the chemical, but it's unclear whether children were injured in the incident. The hospital received patients that were exposed to chemicals and some patients were discharged, Children's Hospital spokesperson Tami Hughes told Patch.

The children were sent to the hospital for medical evaluation after the Milwaukee Fire Department responded, the school said. The pool was evacuated at around 1 p.m. because of poor air quality during a fourth grade swim class.

"Our crews on scene quickly realized this was a massive incident and called for appropriate resources," Milwaukee Fire Department Battalion Chief Andrew Hargarten told FOX 6 Milwaukee. "Generally, everyone did seem to be in good condition when they were transported."

Firefighters cleared the swimming area, and no other children reported sickness after Monday, school spokesperson Erin Hareng told Patch. The school asked families to seek medical evaluation for their children as an extra precaution.

The school is working with its vendor to find the cause of the chlorine buildup, Hareng added. The pool passed its annual inspection at the beginning of the school year, the school said in a statement.

The pool is checked daily, and no unusual chemical levels were found Monday morning, the school added. "Our prayers are with all our students, families and staff who were impacted by this sudden and unexplained event," the school said.