Update, 11:00 a.m.: Fire officials said that a worker at East Hampton High School inhaled some noxious fumes after a small amount of floor stripper and cleaning solutions were inadvertently mixed together in a Dumpster on Thursday morning.
East Hampton Fire Department Chief Thomas Bono said his department was initially called because of smoking coming out of a compacting Dumpster behind the school, at about 9:45 a.m. He called for the hazardous materials team due to the chemical component.
The n transported the worker, who inhaled the fumes, to Southampton Hospital. "I don't know their condition right now," Bono said after the call, "But I don't think it's life threatening or anything like that."
East Hampton School District superintendent Rich Burns said it was a kitchen worker who was taken to the hospital.
With high school classes finished up for the year, no student evacuations took place.
East Hampton Town Chief Fire Marshal David "Buzzy" Brown, who also responded to the scene to investigate, ruled the incident an accident. He said a worker had disposed of a nearly-empty can of solution used on floors, but when the compactor was turned on, the remnants mixed with a mop that had a cleaning solution on it that contained bleach.
A chemical reaction was sparked due to the corrosiveness in the floor cleaner, "just enough to creat some fumes and make somebody sick," he said. "You've got to be very cautious with certain types of cleaners."
In fact, he said, the type of floor cleaner is not even used in the school when students are in the building.
A few volunteers with the Hazmat team suited up for the call, but there were no more fumes, Bono said. They left by 10:45 a.m.
Bono said firefighters withstood the extreme heat well by staying hydrated. The Ladies Auxiliary brought water and Gatorade to the scene.
Previously: The Hazmat team responded to the for a call on Thursday morning around 9:45 a.m.
Though the details weren't completely clear, it appears that some kind of mixture of floor stripper and regular household cleaner caused some smoke at the high school, near a Dumpster.
A patient was reportedly in the nurse's office at the high school due to inhalation, though it was not clear whether the patient was an adult or a student.
Firefighters arriving on scene at Long Lane reported negative smoke and were staging outside.
The Hazmat team is comprised of firefighters from the . The was called for additional help, but did not respond.
Two ambulances responded to standby; one ambulance is for the reported patient and one was on standby for the firefighters in case they need it.
The Ladies Auxiliary was being called in to bring water and Gatorade to the firefighters who were facing in the extreme heat.
Check back for more details as they become available.
