ORDWAY, Colo. —
A rural Colorado high school is sending a message to its teenage students: vaping will not be tolerated.
That’s according to a Facebook post from Crowley County High School, which canceled its game against Rocky Ford Jr./Sr. High School “due to team issues regarding vaping and other school infractions.”
Principal Brandon Roe said the decision was not made lightly. Roe said he, the superintendent, volleyball coach and athletic director all had extensive discussions over the course of a week-long investigation before deciding to forfeit the game.
“After talking with a number of kids, boys and girls, athletes and non-athletes, we're just kind of seeing a trend towards this almost an acceptance within the student body of vaping,” Roe said.
This comes after Colorado confirmed a second case of vaping-related lung illness, which includes specific symptoms including shortness of breath or trouble breathing, chest pain, cough, coughing involving blood, fatigue and possible fever.
Nationwide, there have been hundreds of cases of vaping-related illness in 33 states, and three deaths.
No single vaping device, liquid or ingredient has been tied to the illness. Most of the victims are teens.
Colorado has the most teens vaping out of any state, a number that’s twice the national average.
“We’re not trying to jump on the vaping bandwagon,” Roe said. “We understand the dangers of it, but I feel as an administrative team, we would have taken this stance no matter what the infraction, [be it] alcohol, drugs, whatever it may be.”
The Crowley County High School volleyball team will be back on the court for a game against Eads on Tuesday.
A Facebook post about the southeastern Colorado school district’s decision to cancel the game due to vaping concerns has been shared on Facebook more than 2,600 times.
The entire population of Crowley County is 5,800 people.
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