Classes are canceled Friday at a Rifle elementary school as engineers and health inspectors try to determine what sickened 16 students and a teacher this morning.
A natural gas leak, carbon monoxide and food poisoning have been investigated and don’t seem like likely causes for the illnesses at Graham Mesa Elementary, school officials said this afternoon.
In the meantime, engineers will investigate the building’s mechanical systems, while environmental consultants look into the possibility of mold, Garfield Re-2 School District spokeswoman Theresa Hamilton said in an e-mail.
All 17 of those fell ill were taken to Grand River Hospital in Rifle. Twelve were checked out and released about three and half hours later.
Six students were transferred to Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs, where they were examined and released, Hamilton said.
The building was evacuated after the students and teachers reported feeling ill at about 11:45 a.m.
Other faculty and students were taken to Wamsley Elementary School, about two miles away, to complete the school day, and their parents were notified by phone.
