BERLIN, Dec 15 (AFP) - Thirty-six schoolchildren in northern Germany were intoxicated on Wednesday by an unidentified chemical placed in a flower pot at the entrance to their school, local police said.
They said two children at the school in the town of Edemissen had been admitted to hospital after suffering serious irritation to their skin and airways.
The others were treated at the scene by emergency medical teams, before being allowed to go home.
Police said they had no clues about who had planted the chemical, or why, or of the exact nature of the suspicious substance, which investigators said had a strong smell.
The school's 500 pupils had been evacuated by their teachers. The police said they had opened a criminal enquiry for "grievious bodily harm".
12/15/2004 19:21 GMT - AFP