Carbon monoxide poisoning at Draper preschool hospitalizes 14
On Wednesday, nine children and five adults were hospitalized with symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning in Draper. The incident occurred at a preschool at American Preparatory Academy.
According to Draper firefighters, it happened after a contractor was working with gas-powered equipment and the fumes got into the school, sickening some of the students and staff members.
First responders were called to the school at 3:40 p.m. and a staff member said a few kids and staff members were nauseous and vomiting. Because of this they evacuated the school.
The Unified Fire hazmat team confirmed elevated carbon monoxide levels throughout the building. There is an ongoing investigation into whether any carbon monoxide alarms went off and alerted the occupants.
Firefighters said the carbon monoxide potentially impacted up to 45 children and 10 adults, as the exposure happened throughout the day, but only 14 hospitalizations have been reported. Most went to the hospital in personal vehicles.
Forward Party gains ballot access in Utah
Another political party is officially on the books in Utah after the Forward Party gained ballot access across the state. The party is led at the national level by Andrew Yang, who ran for president in 2020.
The party held a press conference last month at the state capitol to announce it had filed signatures with the state elections office in order to qualify. It got officially certified earlier this week and is now the eighth registered party in the state.
The party's policy is primarily focused on several government reforms, allowing candidates to take their own positions on the most hot-button issues of the day.
The party’s leaders said the party plans to focus on three primary reforms: advocating for alternative voting methods, open or nonpartisan primaries, and independent redistricting to end partisan gerrymandering.
