Mariner High evacuated

Pepper spray release sends 30 to hospital

By Eric Stevick and Sharon Salyer

Herald Writers

Thirty Mariner High School students were taken to the hospital Wednesday with complaints of itchy eyes, coughing and sore throats after a substance believed to be pepper spray spread through the school’s ventilation system, officials said.

All of the students were later released from Providence Everett Medical Center Wednesday afternoon. No one was seriously hurt.

But the incident sparked a fear in both students and parents that was intensified by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and an anthrax scare in Florida.

"That was like everybody’s first thought, that it was anthrax," said Shyla Weber, a freshman at the school.

The 1,700-student school in south Everett was evacuated around 10:50 a.m. to the school stadium. Meanwhile, parents anxiously waited for word in the parking lot. Fire districts 1 and 7, along with the Edmonds, Everett, Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace fire departments and two private ambulance companies, descended on Mariner High. The incident is being investigated by the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.

Shyla’s mother, Dana Weber, immediately crossed the street from her home to look for her daughter. The two held hands as they left the campus in the early afternoon.

"That was really scary," said Shyla, who was in science class when her throat got raspy.

Dana Weber said she appreciated how smoothly the evacuation was handled. "They did a fantastic job of keeping everybody calm," the mother said.

The evacuation began minutes after school officials began hearing a series of student health complaints.

Tracy VanWinkle, Mariner principal, said all the emergency response drills in recent years paid off. "One plan that will work is the foundation for every emergency," she said.

Students huddled in the cold and wind in the Goddard Stadium grandstands for nearly two hours while medics treated classmates and a hazardous materials team searched for a cause.

All classes, a parents open house and extracurricular activities were canceled in the early afternoon. Classes are scheduled to resume this morning.

Ed Widdis, assistant chief of Snohomish Fire District 1, said the cause is believed to be pepper spray rather than a more serious substance, based on symptoms and how quickly it dissipated.

With the first air monitoring the hazardous material team did, "there was no reading, nothing present," Widdis said.

Tests after the school’s air circulation system was turned back on also turned up no signs of a substance, he said.

Pepper spray contains capsaicin, a chemical derived from cayenne, paprika, or chilies. While it causes extreme irritation and pain during initial exposure, it is less irritating with repeated use. In fact, capsaicin is available in a cream to treat arthritis and other painful conditions.

Dustin Hooker, a freshman, had just left the locker room after a physical education class when he noticed something wasn’t normal. "Everyone was coughing," he said. "I started coughing. I knew something was wrong."

As he made his way outside the school, he became very dizzy. A junior ROTC cadet ordered him to see medics. At first he hesitated, worried that others might be worse off. But when his coughing continued and he felt he was about to pass out, the cadet became more insistent.

"He told me to get over there," Hooker said. "I kind of got scared."

Once Hooker arrived at the hospital, he was given oxygen. Meanwhile, his mother, Cammara Hooker, left work to drive to the hospital, getting lost along the way. "Your mind works on overtime," she said. "It’s scary to find out your kid’s gone to the hospital in an ambulance."

"He was coughing a lot," she said. "And he has asthma. There was a little bit of a concern."

She said her son was treated in a room with four school friends, who were kidding around by the time she arrived.

It was her son’s first ambulance ride, and he joked that he was disappointed they didn’t turn on the emergency lights.

A nurse had arranged for lunch for the students, telling the chef: "Take it easy on the vegetables, these guys are teenagers."

"It was really pleasing that they had a sense of humor with the kids," Cammara Hooker said. "It made them feel at ease."

Her son told her that students were rushed out of Mariner so fast they didn’t grab their books or jackets, which did have one benefit.

"He doesn’t have any homework tonight; that’s what he says," she said, chucking as they drove home Wednesday afternoon.

You can call Herald Writer Eric Stevick at 425-339-3446

or send e-mail to stevick@heraldnet.com.