A school resource officer pepper-sprayed students students at Meadow Woods Middle School on Wednesday afternoon while breaking up a fight, injuring eight children, Principal Marisol Méndez told parents in a recorded message Wednesday.
The officer deployed the pepper spray when a fight erupted between several students at the end of a lunch period.
“The students did not obey the school resource officer’s orders to stop the physical altercation,” Méndez said in the recording.
That’s when the officer used the spray “to control the situation before it escalated further,” she said.
Orange County Fire Rescue responded to the school at 1800 Rhode Island Woods Circle just before 1 p.m. to treat those who were exposed. OCFR spokeswoman Kat Kennedy said eight patients were exposed to the pepper spray.
Medics took one child to Nemours Children’s Hospital in Orlando to be assessed, Orange County Fire Rescue spokeswoman Kat Kennedy said.
Méndez said a school administrator accompanied the student to the hospital.
Some parents declined the fire department’s offer to take their children to the hospital.
Pepper spray can irritate the eyes, nose, mouth, lungs and skin, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Common side effects include coughing and burning sensations in the eyes and nose.
The names and ages of the patients were not released.
Officials will be investigating the fight to see if further action should be taken, Méndez said.
“The school and law enforcement will be investigating the situation fairly and the appropriate discipline will be handed out according to the code of conduct,” she said.
Orange County School Resource Officers are sworn officers with the Sheriff’s Office and the Orlando Police Department. They have powers of arrest and it is typical for them to be armed.
“The safety and security of all of our students and staff are taken seriously at all times,” Méndez said in the recording.
Meadow Woods Middle School serves students from sixth to eighth grades. As of March 15, there were 963 students enrolled at the school.
cdoornbos@orlandosentinel.com or 407-650-6931
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