Nearly 40 students and staff at the Lehigh Valley Academy Regional Charter School in Northampton County were taken to area hospitals Friday afternoon, officials said.
In an email just after 1 p.m., LVA CEO Susan Mauser told the school community that the high school building was being emptied "out of an abundance of caution due to a few staff members and students feeling unwell."
Those who were not feeling well were being checked by emergency medical services, while the building was being examined, Mauser wrote.
SkyForce10 showed students sitting on the ground outside as several ambulances surrounded the high school campus buildings in Hanover Township.
Get top local stories in Philly delivered to you every morning. >Sign up for NBC Philadelphia's News Headlines newsletter.
Officials tell NBC10 that 11 people complained of feeling sick around noon. However, authorities wouldn’t disclose any specifics on conditions.
The fire chief said, in all, 39 individuals were taken to the hospital to be evaluated. Both Lehigh Valley Health Network and St. Luke’s University Health Network said they had taken some of the patients.
Colonial Regional Police chief said nothing had come up on their equipment readings to lead them to suspect there was an air quality issue.
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
The cause of the illness was not yet announced as of Friday evening.
The charter school has 1,825 students who come from 16 school districts in the area.
