Firefighters arrested after 100 students land in hospital following fumigation exercise
Ekiti government says it has handed over to the police for questioning firefighters who might be responsible for the hospitalisation of about 100 College of Health Technology students in Ijero Ekiti.
According to the Ekiti government, the Federal Fire Service personnel, who fumigated the school, have been handed over to the police for questioning.
The Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Oyebanji Filani, told journalists in Ado-Ekiti that the government would unravel the cause of their admission to the hospital.
Mr Filani said many of the students had been discharged, that only 36 remained hospitalised at the State Specialist Hospital, Ijero Ekiti.
Two of them, he disclosed, were referred to the Federal Teaching Hospital Ido Ekiti, while one was taken to a tertiary health facility in Ado Ekiti for further attention.
The commissioner added that more medical personnel, oxygen cylinders, and fluids were mobilised to the college to support those attending to the affected students.
He assured members of the public that the situation was now under control.
The incident followed alleged fumigation of the college environment by some government officials a couple of days ago as part of a measure to prevent the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reliable sources within the campus told journalists that some of the students hospitalised were said to be asthmatic patients, who developed complications not long after inhaling the chemical used for the fumigation.
Those with critical conditions were rushed to the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti.
The sources added that some of the students, who also were admitted at the General Hospital, Ijero-Ekiti responded to treatment.
It was further learnt that the students were sitting an examination when the fumigation took place, though the school management was said to have received a memo on the planned fumigation.
Many parents besieged the institution to know the state of health of their children.
