Suspicious packages reported at three Baltimore County synagogues Monday, officials say
Hazmat crews and police responded to reports of suspicious packages — one of which caused people to be nauseated upon opening it — at three synagogues in Baltimore County on Monday, officials said.
Parents and emergency hazmat crews responded about 1:45 p.m. to Beth El Synagogue, which operates the Pauline Mash School For Early Childhood Education at its complex at 8101 Park Heights Ave., after two adults became nauseated upon opening an envelope sent to the synagogue, officials said.
The nature of the substance that caused the reaction was not clear, and tests for poisonous substances in the building were negative, said Elise Armacost, a Baltimore County Fire Department spokeswoman.
“They opened some kind of an envelope that arrived, I believe, through the mail, and they immediately began complaining of feeling ill,” Armacost said outside the school Monday.
Thirty-three staff members and 78 children were inside the building during the incident Monday, Armacost said.
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