At least 15 pupils from Effingham Heights Primary School in Durban have been treated by paramedics after they started having coughing fits and complained of burning throats and eyes.
Netcare 911 spokesperson Shawn Herbst said the pupils most affected were the ones who were seated next to windows in their classrooms.
“We received a call from the school after the principal declared an emergency and evacuated all classrooms. The kids closest to the windows in the classrooms initially began coughing and then their throats started to burn.”
Herbst said paramedics were still trying to establish the cause of the incident.
“The school has no kitchen and there are no big factories in the area. We suspect that someone could have been playing with pepper spray or something outside the school premises, which would have affected the pupils.”
He said all the pupils were in a stable condition and their parents had been informed.
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