Republished September 27, 2018 - 4:14 PM
Original Publication Date September 27, 2018 - 3:01 PM
KAMLOOPS, B.C. - About 135 students at an elementary school in Kamloops, B.C., were stung by wasps during their Terry Fox run Thursday.
Diana Skoglund, communications manager for School District 73, said it's believed the swarm attacked after the students ran over a ground nest.
While the cross-country running team regularly uses the same trail, staff believe the high volume of kids participating in the run Thursday disturbed the nest.
Parents and emergency responders were called immediately and all of the children were gathered in the gym for treatment and observation. Two children were taken to hospital for observation but Skoglund said the remainder recovered with treatments of ice packs and sting remedies.
"There were some tears for sure but it wasn't chaos," she said.
None of the kids with known anaphylaxis had extreme reactions, but Skoglund said they had EpiPens with them just in case. The two who were taken to hospital with stronger reactions had not previously been known to have anaphylactic allergies.
"Many of the children went home with their parents. Many others stayed, finished their lunch and went to class," Skoglund said.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2018