Students allegedly poisoned by chemicals found in school, seek help on the Internet
Students from Xinailixiang School in Da’an city, in China's Jilin province, have taken to Weibo in a desperate attempt for someone to take action after many of them were diagnosed with illnesses related to chemical poisoning.
According to People's Daily, a group of students experienced symptoms such as nausea, coughs and eye infections after claiming to be exposed to excessive amounts of formaldehyde found in the school's newly purchased desks and chairs.
Formaldehyde is a colourless and highly toxic gas at room temperature. Inhalation of the gas will result in multiple health problems and long-term exposure can lead to cancer.
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The sick students were admitted to No. 1 Clinical Hospital of Bethune in Changchun city, where they were diagnosed with severe formaldehyde poisoning.
Despite parents' concerns and appeals to the school and relevant government departments, their pleas to have the school investigated have been ignored.
On Monday, a Weibo user who went by the name Zhuiyixun posted pictures of students holding CT scans at the hospital, bloodied tissues and a close-up of a female student's bloodied eye. The post also detailed how a petition for aid was rejected and an extensive list of symptoms the affected students were suffering from.
According to CCTV, Zhuiyixun's post went viral within hours and led China's Communist Youth League to urge Jilin authorities to take action immediately.
In the group's Weibo post, it was stressed that the health of China's youths is a top priority and the country needed to protect their legal rights.
This is the second case of poisoning in a Chinese school this year. In April, more than 500 students at the Changzhou Foreign Language School were diagnosed with various illnesses including cancer, after they were allegedly exposed to toxic substances found at the school's site.
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