14 high school students from a High School in central Tokyo were sent to hospital on the afternoon of July 16 after reportedly eating extremely spicy potato chips.

According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police and other authorities, the high school called emergency services at around 1:00PM, saying a student had fallen ill from the chips.

Student that was taken to hospital: At first, I thought it was delicious, but later it became spicy. The inside of my mouth hurt.

Several emergency vehicles rushed to the scene and caused a commotion at the school.

NTV Reporter: Did the ambulances come right away?

Student at the school: Yes, rather quickly. The sirens just came out of nowhere.

NTV Reporter: Do you ever get together with others and have super spicy food?

Student at the school: No, not at all.

Some of the ambulances were special ambulances known as “Super Ambulances” that are used as rescue stations in the event of a major disaster.

According to the company that manufactures the chips, the chili pepper used as an ingredient is more than 200 times hotter than Tabasco.

The packaging for the chip has a clear warning on the label, and states that the chips are extremely spicy and shouldn’t be eaten by those under 18 years of age.

In total, 33 students ate the spicy chips during their lunch break that were brought by a grade 10 student; 15 later complained of feeling ill and 14 were rushed to hospital.

Student that was taken to hospital: Others were saying it was really spicy so I wanted to try it myself.

NTV Reporter: How spicy was it?

Student that was taken to hospital: It was just really spicy. The inside of my mouth hurt and even felt numb.

NTV Reporter: What happened after that?

Student that was taken to hospital: My stomach started to hurt a bit.

NTV Reporter: What did the people with the most severe symptoms look like?

Student that was taken to hospital: They looked like they were in pain, and that they might vomit. I also felt nauseous.

The 14 people taken to hospital reportedly complained of mouth and stomach pains, nausea and other symptoms, but their condition was not considered to be life-threatening.

The manufacturer, whose packaging clearly warns against underaged persons eating the product, released a statement on the evening of the 16th regarding the incident.

Extremely Spicy Chip Manufacturer: We apologize for any inconvenience caused to our customers and other concerned parties. We pray for the speedy recovery of those who were taken to hospital and those who have complained of ill health.

The company also said that they haven’t received any reports of ill health from other customers.

Cases of extremely hot foods have also led to deaths in other countries.

In the United States, a 14-year-old boy with a congenital heart condition died last September after eating a Paqui “One Chip Challenge” extremely spicy tortilla chip.

This is thought to be due to the so-called “Super Spicy Challenge”, where people see how long they can go without drinking water after eating spicy items.