A mysterious gas leak near a kid's playground in southwest Germany, has left six children in the hospital.
Emergency services were called to the park in Neumarkt, Mannheim, at 11 a.m. local time on Friday morning after several children were coughing and experiencing eye irritation after going down a slide in the playground, local news radio station FHH reported.
An irritant toxic gas broke out in the playground, only a few meters away from the Neckar School, FHH reported.
Two classes from the school started to complain of feeling ill after playing on the playground. The report said six children were rushed to the hospital, and others are thought to have been affected.
The police are investigating the incident on suspicion of bodily harm, the radio station reported.
Local media reports say the children are suffering from irritation of their mucous membranes, the inner lining of some organs and body cavities, such as the nose, mouth, lungs and stomach. Glands in mucous membranes make mucous, the thick, slippery fluid.
Emergency services were still on site trying to determine the cause, The Sun reported.
Newsweek has contacted Mannheim police for comment.
In June, 21 teenagers—aged between 13 and 17—were killed in a nightclub in the South African coastal city of East London after what was believed to be poisoning or a gas leak.
On Saturday, officials in South Africa said they found traces of methanol in the blood of the teens, and that they are still investigating whether the levels of the toxic chemical in their bodies were enough to kill them.
The teenagers were found dead on tables and couches at the popular venue the Enyobeni Tavern on June 26.
The 52-year-old owner of the bar was arrested, police in the Eastern Cape province said on July 13. Two employees at the tavern were also arrested.
The bar's owner is due to appear at East London Magistrates Court on August 19 and will face charges, including those relatedly to allegedly supplying underaged kids with alcohol.
In April, German police detained a woman they believe was responsible for contaminating food and drink that poisoned people at Technical University of Darmstadt in August 2021. Seven people reported health problems after eating and drinking at the university, including intoxication and blueish discoloration. One 30-year-old student was in critical condition at the time, but all seven people have since recovered and left hospitals.
The 32-year-old female suspect from Mainz has been placed in a psychiatric hospital, police said.
Correction 07/22/22, 11:06 a.m. ET: This article was updated to correct the location of the city of Mannheim, which is not in Bavaria.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Jack Dutton is a Newsweek Reporter based in Cape Town, South Africa. His focus is reporting on global politics and ... Read more
