RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Health experts are warning parents, teachers and students about the potential dangers of eating drug-infused edibles after four students got sick at a Richmond high school.
Richmond Police and Fire & EMS say they received a call shortly before noon on Wednesday, Oct. 18 in regards to four Armstrong High School students “who were in medical distress.”
8News spoke with the Kelly Malone, the aunt of an Armstrong student, after she heard what happened.
“I won’t say that I was surprised, but it was definitely very disheartening,” said Malone.
As the investigation continues, the Richmond Police Department said it is still working to learn what the ‘suspected cannabis’ substance was.
8News spoke with Dr. Chris Holstege, director of the University of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Poison Center, who said Wednesday’s incident is part of an unfortunate trend happening across central Virginia.
“It’s a dangerous time to be taking some of these products,” said Hosltege. “We don’t know exactly what’s in them.”
According to the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association, more than 1,000 children across the Commonwealth went to the emergency room after ingesting cannabis during the first half of 2023.
According to Richmond Police, no one is facing charges in connection to Wednesday’s incident at Armstrong at this time.
Richmond’s school policy states that students are not allowed to use, have or be under the influence of drugs on campus. Breaking this rule could lead to school reassignment and long-term suspension.
Holstege says preventing incidents like this starts with educating parents, teachers and students.
“It is a challenging time right now,” said Holstege. “I think there needs to be a lot of education, that there is some pretty significant dangers associated with these products.”
