Again, 12 Lagos students in hospital after inhaling chemical
For the second time in five months, another 12 students of Ogba Junior Grammar School, Ikeja, Lagos, have fainted after inhaling some substances suspected to be chemicals on Thursday.
About 20 students of the same school collapsed and were hospitalised after inhaling similar substance in October, 2013.
The affected students in the latest incident are still receiving treatment at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH. The school was immediately shut and all students, teachers and petty traders, immediately evacuated.
The General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, Dr. Olufemi Oke-Osayintolu, told our correspondent that the victims had been rushed to LASUTH, adding that they were responding to treatment. He could not say if they fainted, suffocated or were unconscious, but said that they sustained injuries, probably during the evacuation exercise.
The GM said that experts from LASEPA were combing the school's premises to ascertain the source of the gas emission. However, the Chairman of Ojodu Local Government Council Development Area, Mr. James Oloro, told reporters that the students fainted after inhaling the substance.
He added that the Ogba Shopping Arcade, which houses a commercial bank, other business establishments and the school, would remain shut until the source of the strange gas was unraveled.
Parents and relatives were seen trooping to the school to check on their children and wards.
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Government has called on artisans to conduct their businesses in safe and conducive environment.
The Commissioner for Special Duties, Dr. Wale Ahmed, made the call at an event organised by the State's Safety Commission to mark the celebration of the safety week at Adeyemi Bero Hall, Alausa, Ikeja with the theme: 'Doing Business Safely in Lagos.'
Ahmed explained that the commission was created to promote safety culture through sustained public and institutional enlightenment strategies and programmes.