PAULSBORO, N.J. (CBS) - Hundreds of students at a South Jersey high school had to be evacuated for a nearly an hour this morning because of fumes believed to have originated at the neighboring Valero oil company refinery.

Paulsboro School District superintendant Dr. Frank Scambia says about 630 students in grades 7 through 12 were evacuated to the school’s football stadium this morning when a sulfurous (“rotten egg”) smell began filling the high school at 8:45am.

One female student and one guidance counselor were sickened by the odor, evaluated at a nearby hospital, released, and returned to the school.

The school building was aired out and ventilated by local fire crews.  Shortly after 9:30am students were allowed to return to classes.

No one at the Paulsboro-based Valero refinery was immediately available, so there was no immediate confirmation that the refinery was the source of the fumes.
Reported by Al Novack, KYW Newsradio 1060