DAVIE, Fla. – Six teenagers were hospitalized Thursday night after attending a military ball in Davie, authorities confirmed.
Davie Fire Marshal Robert Taylor confirmed that six people were transported to Broward Health Medical Center after ingesting “an unknown substance.”
“They laced the drinks or put something in the drinks,” one student, Marquese Paeilla, told Local 10 News.
“The water at one of our tables, it had drugs in them. People started putting drugs in them,” another student Earl Cayo said. “We don’t know exactly who or how many people did it, but for the kids who drank it – the Northeast kids who drank water – they got high and everything.”
Police and paramedics rushed to the Signature Grand venue at 6900 W. State Rd 84. around 11 p.m.
Davie police spokeswoman Sarah Andeara said while the substance the students took is unknown at this time, authorities believe it was “an over the counter legal substance.”
We are told this was a combined military ball for members of J-ROTC at Northeast High School and another school.
Some of the students who were there say some of their friends took a turn for the worse, and it happened quickly.
“One moment we are in the ballroom dancing, and the next, one person starts feeling dizzy and throwing up real bad,” Lorento Toafa said.
Andeara said the incident was isolated to the six students who were transported to the hospital. No foul play is suspected, she said.
The Broward County Public School District released the following statement Friday morning: “The safety of our students is always our top priority. The District and Northeast High School administration are concerned and closely following the Davie Police investigation into what caused six students to become ill Thursday night while attending the Air Force JROTC Military Ball at the Signature Grand in Davie.
“The six Northeast High School students were transported to the hospital, where two are still being evaluated. School staff remains at the hospital to offer any necessary assistance to the students’ families.”