Middle school student finds worm inside school lunch, district says

OCALA, Fla. (WCJB/Gray News) - Some students at a Florida school got to leave classes early Thursday after one student made a sickening discovery during lunch.

Officials with Marion County Public Schools confirmed reports that a student had found what seemed to be a worm inside food served at Howard Middle School in Ocala.

School officials said the worm was found in prepackaged apple slices.

Several other students went to the school’s clinic because they felt sick.

The district said it is working to determine if any students ate the contaminated food and fell ill afterward.

Food service workers at the school inspected other food items and said they found no other pests.

Officials said the incident was isolated, and the food was returned after the inspection.

The school’s principal sent out a statement to the families of students after the incident, saying a county food services inspector was sent to the school after the worm was reported, and no other issues were found.

“The health and safety of our students is always our top priority, and we will tightly monitor food quality,” the statement read in part.

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