RUPERT, Idaho — A strong natural gas odor forced students out of a classroom at Minico High School twice in one week, prompting an evacuation and a day of canceled classes. Some students say school officials didn't take their safety concerns seriously.
Keri Wilcox was in 5th period history class on Monday when she noticed an unusual smell that left her feeling ill.
"It just started to reek of propane and gas. It was like really bad, it came out of nowhere," Wilcox said.
Wilcox said the smell affected more than just her.
"One of my friends I was told was like throwing up and pale from it and they checked everyone out," Wilcox said. "I had a headache until I went to sleep at night."
According to Minidoka School District Superintendent Spencer Larsen, within 30 minutes, district maintenance, the fire department, and Intermountain Gas were all on site to determine the source of the smell, using tools to detect for natural gas and CO2.
"And they told us that we were safe to continue. These levels were not near toxic, and we were safe to continue school," Larsen said.
One teacher was checked out by EMTs on Monday and transported to the hospital. Larsen said the teacher was back to work on Tuesday.
Parents were notified using the ParentSquare app and invited to contact their children and remove them from classes if needed.
No odors were reported on Tuesday, but on Wednesday, a different teacher again alerted officials to a smell in the same room. The whole school was evacuated, and the building was again checked for hazardous gases. The highest level detected was 0.3 parts per million.
"But those are minute levels, and we were told that we were safe and didn't need to cancel school," Larsen said.
Classes were canceled Thursday to allow HVAC technicians time to make and test repairs.
Larsen also addressed rumors that had circulated among students.
"I did hear reports yesterday that a student had passed out. I mean, these are the rumors that spread, but no, that did not happen," Larsen said. "Nobody has passed out from the smell."
When asked about reports of vomiting, Larsen said, "Not, no vomiting."
Wilcox said she felt the health concerns raised by students were not taken seriously by school administration.
"Kids are under their care from eight in the morning till 3:50. It is their responsibility for our safety and I don't feel like they took that into account. They just wanted us in there in their school to be present, so I felt unsafe during it just," Wilcox said.
Larsen pushed back on that characterization.
"To me that shows that we're taking it seriously, to bring in the experts — the fire department, the gas company — let's use their fine equipment and see what we can figure out, and that's taking it seriously," Larsen said.
Classes at Minico High School are expected to resume as normal on Monday.
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