Students at Erasmus High School were evacuated on Monday afternoon after the FDNY says they were responding to a gas leak.

National Grid was at the school actively working for hours to fix the root of the problem and mend the leak.

Students tell News 12 that they heard the alarms go off and assumed it was a normal fire drill, but that as they were leaving the building they did smell a strong gas odor. The students and staff waited outside for an hour before being let back inside.

The FDNY was brought in to aid in the incident and say they transported one person to the hospital. At this time, it’s not known if that person was a student or staff member at the school.

“It was chaotic, everyone was looking for their teachers… the A.P.’s and principals from different schools were looking for their kids, trying to separate their kids and whatnot,” said high school freshman Alesha Decamp.

The Department of Education tells News 12 that all staff and students are safe and the school is not in danger, adding that the evacuation was done out of an abundance of caution and that the gas leak took place outside of the building.