A slew of Wellesley Police, Fire and other emergency personnel were on the scene at he Bright Horizons early education center at 60 William Street in Wellesley on late Friday morning for a hazmat call involving what turned out to be a soap snafu.
The town received a call from an employee at the daycare center reporting that a student had been inadvertently exposed to a commercial grade dish soap while washing their hands. “Upon arrival the Wellesley Fire Department personnel learned that more than one student had washed their hands from this dispenser and as a precaution requested that multiple ambulances respond to the scene
Fire Chief Steve Mortarelli told local TV news stations, including Boston 25 News, that about 40 kids between the ages of 1 and 5 were at the daycare, and that 11 of them were hospitalized with “minor, superficial rashes,” similar to a bad sunburn. One adult was also taken to a hospital due to skin irritation. No further updates on the patients’ status was available as of late Friday afternoon.
The Wellesley Fire Department requested that the State Hazmat Team respond to investigate the incident.
“After an extensive recon of all rooms, the Haz-Mat team found that three of the soap dispensers contained a commercial dishwashing concentrate that was stored in the general vicinity. The Board of Health will be in contact with the business owner regarding next steps,” according to the town.
Police, Fire and EMS on scene at an early education center on William St. Several children were inadvertently exposed to a commercial grade dish cleaner. FD and EMS are evaluating patients and some have already been transported to area hospitals. Wellesley FD will provide updates pic.twitter.com/S1dAMmR5yv
— Wellesley Police (@WellesleyPolice) February 6, 2026
