Several people are being treated at hospitals after a chemical incident forced a building evacuation on the Cocoa campus of Eastern Florida State College.
Firefighters set up a triage area outside Building 20 on the Cocoa campus, otherwise known as the Health Sciences Center.
School officials said it happened just before 11:30 Monday morning in the dental lab located inside the building. Several people inside were overcome by the chemical release.
We were there as several were loaded up on stretchers and transported to hospitals, complaining of nausea and dizziness. Meantime several people who may have been exposed were being evaluated outside.
Denise Eklund arrived for classes during the incident. She would have gone inside the building in the afternoon.
"I got out of class early, but it's not a good thing. People got sick," she said.
Firefighters and hazmat crews worked to clear the air in the building. Students and faculty who were evacuated from the building waited to gather the belongings they left behind as they rushed outside.
A total of 31 people were treated on the scene and seven were taken to hospitals in Rockledge and Cocoa Beach.
Original numbers released by the school had 14 being transported.