Curry College Hockey Players Hospitalized Due To Zamboni Fumes
MILTON (CBS) – Members of the Curry College men's hockey team were taken to the hospital Friday morning due to an illness they contracted from a Zamboni's fumes during a game in Rhode Island Thursday night.
Milton Hospital officials said the nitrogen dioxide emitted by the Zamboni at the Rhode Island Sports Center was the cause, and the illness contracted by the 28 team members is not contagious. Hospital officials added that symptoms can appear up to 48 hours after exposure.
"You could see when the Zamboni was out there, it was like 10 feet, it was like a big cloud of smoke," said one player. "Our Zamboni doesn't do that."
Many of the team members had reported symptoms including shortness of breath, dizziness, and the coughing up of blood.
WBZ-TV's Christina Hager reports.
"The guys were saying during the game they were having a hard time breathing," said Scott Wentworth, a Curry College hockey player.
Officials at Curry College released a statement:
"We are both concerned about and attentive to the medical condition of our student-athletes, and are told they are in good condition at this time. Our thoughts and prayers are with them for a speedy and full recovery."
The Salve Regina men's hockey team members reportedly suffered similar symptoms after a game Feb. 5 against Johnson & Wales at the Rhode Island Sports Center, where Curry played Thursday night.
Johnson & Wales said none of their players reported being sick, which makes sense, according to players. They said the Zamboni was parked near their locker room.
Some players have to be hooked up to oxygen tanks for at most 48 hours. All of the players, though, are expected to be fine.
Curry, who beat Johnson & Wales 4-1 Thursday night, was scheduled to play Wentworth on Saturday. That game was postponed to Monday.
Over the past five years, the government has tightened rules on Zamboni emmissions to prevent similar accidents involving toxic gas like nitrogen dioxide.
