Four young children and an adult were treated at a local hospital and released Thursday after pepper spray from a key-chain canister accidentally discharged inside an Elk Grove Village day-care center.
Elk Grove Village Fire Department paramedics transported two boys, two girls and an adult female employee of the Boulevard Pre-School, 554 E. Devon Ave., to Alexian Brothers Medical Center after the incident, which occurred about noon. A hospital spokeswoman said the five were released shortly after being brought in.
It was unclear how the device was activated, though officials theorized that a child was playing with a parent’s key chain, said Lt. John Guglielmo of the Elk Grove Village Fire Department.
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“All we know is that one of the kids had a set of keys,” Guglielmo said. “On the set of keys was this pepper spray. It got accidentally activated.
One adult was treated at the scene, Guglielmo said. The preschool was caring for about 40 children, ages 3 to 5, at the time of the incident, he said, though few were at the back of the building where the incident happened.
The facility was reopened by about 12:45 p.m., Guglielmo said.