By Rich McKay
(Reuters) – A carbon monoxide leak sent dozens of children and staffers at a Pennsylvania daycare center to local hospitals on Tuesday in an evacuation that drew every ambulance in the city of Allentown to the scene, authorities said on Tuesday.
At least 28 children and seven adults were involved in the incident, which began with a report of an unconscious child at the Happy Smiles Learning Center shortly before 7 a.m., said Allentown Fire Chief Efrain Agosto.
“I’m told all are stable and thank God, everyone is going to be fine,” Agosto said. “This could have turned out really bad, lethal.”
The firefighters who arrived for the medical check had gas detectors with them which alerted the crew to the presence of the gas, which is odorless, colorless and potentially deadly.
Agosto said once the gas was detected, more crew was called in and the building evacuated. “It was definitely a lethal situation,” the fire chief said.
All eight ambulances in the city, 60 miles (97 km) north of Philadelphia, as well as rescue crews from nearby communities responded to the call.
First responders found some children and adults who were showing signs of dizziness, nausea and vomiting, Agosto said, all symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning.
Officials did not have a number of how many people were in the building at the time, but according to the tracking site ChildcareCenter.us, the facility is licensed to care for 63 children.
A spokesperson for Happy Smiles Learning Center was not immediately available for comment to Reuters.
The cause of the leak was not confirmed, but the chief said he believed it was the center’s heating system that malfunctioned.
(Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Editing by Marguerita Choy)