After consuming what authorities claimed were marijuana treats, eleven pupils from a South Side elementary school in Chicago were transported to the hospital on Tuesday afternoon.
At Fort Dearborn Elementary School, located at 9025 S. Throop St. in the Brainerd neighbourhood, the pupils were ill shortly after 2:00 p.m. In a letter, Kimberly Porter, the principal of Fort Dearborn, informed the parents.
“We believe our community member may have ingested the unknown substance in the form of ‘edibles,’ which are food or drinks that are made with cannabis or other prohibited substances,” Porter stated. “Prohibited substances of any kind are not allowed at our school, and we encourage you to take this opportunity to have a conversation with your child about the health risks associated with consuming edibles, and to remind them not to accept food if they do not know where it came from.”
Just before 2:00 p.m., there was a call that multiple students had overdosed, and ambulances raced to the school.
According to the police, 22 kids consumed what turned out to be THC-containing treats. Eleven of the 22 students required medical care.
“I really would like to know where they actually got the products from,” Fort Dearborn Elementary parent Ethel Allen stated, “because it’s not easily accessible like you can just go to the corner store and they’re going to give it to a child, so it has to be an adult somewhere involved.”
Ora Knowles, whose nephew is a student at Fort Dearborn Elementary, stated, “How did it happen and why, and who brought it — the same questions everyone else should have.”
Police in the northwest suburban city of Wheeling reported that a woman named Dagmara Rouse distributed chocolate delicacies at a nearby park over the weekend. The children, who ranged in age from two to nine, were brought to a local hospital.
Rouse has twelve misdemeanours against him.
Supt. Nikolai Vitti of the Detroit Public Schools Community District in Michigan is also raising concerns over edible marijuana and children.
“Once a week, we’re dealing with an incident with the edibles where a child is being taken to the hospital,” Vitti stated.
Vitti urged lawmakers to alter edibles’ packaging and labelling and raise public awareness of them.
To keep delicacies out of the hands of curious children, Colorado already has regulations prohibiting them from resembling people, animals, or fruit.
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Knowles asked, “Why would you bring it to the school?”
Parents of Chicago’s Fort Dearborn Elementary argue that in the end, the adult should be held accountable.
“You have to be careful what you leave out and have around your children,” Allen stated. “Parents, please pay attention.”
