Chemical Leak Sparks Memories of 1990s Lakeville Incident

Some scary moments unfolded Thursday morning at New Bedford High School as dozens of students were sent to St. Luke's Hospital after being exposed to chemicals in a science lab.

Thankfully, it appears no serious injuries were reported.

The incident, however, sparked memories for some Lakeville natives of a similar incident that occurred back in the '90s.

A chemical spill of an antifreeze-like substance at George R. Austin Middle School sent more than 200 students, faculty and staff to area hospitals.

The accident occurred on May 26, 1995, in a fifth-grade social studies class. Newspaper accounts from the time show the school reopened a week after the incident.

While the spill happened nearly 27 years ago, it is still very clear in the mind of Andrea Botelho, who was a student at the school. She reached out to Fun 107 to share a few memories of that intense day.

Scary Memories

"I didn’t personally get hurt, but I knew a lot of people who were exposed. We had people passing out. The whole school was evacuated. I remember lots of ambulances and buses were sent to transport people to the hospitals. I remember they bused everyone that wasn’t exposed and didn't have symptoms to local elementary schools and the high school, where we had to wait for our parents to pick us up."

'This is Not a Drill'

"All I remember is the smell filled the whole school. I remember as we were being evacuated we saw people in hazmat suits entering. It was super-scary. I just remember everyone running out of the school and them saying it wasn’t a drill over the loud speakers. I remember it smelled like rotten eggs."

Core Memory

"One memory is burned in my mind. After we evacuated the school and we were waiting on the school buses to be transported, we sang a song with the teachers. We sang 'Lean On Me.' I'll never forget it for as long as I live."