NEW LONDON, WI (WLUK/CNN) – Police in Wisconsin recommend St. Patrick’s Day parade-goers throw away their candy after several children experienced numbness on their tongue and cheeks after eating what they thought were Tootsie Rolls.
A long-standing tradition in New London, WI, turned from fun to disappointment after reports that some of the candy from Saturday’s St. Patrick’s Day parade may have been tainted.
"It's a bummer that the kids need to go get rid of their candy. That's too bad,” parade-goer Barbara Steffans said.
Sgt. Earl Ruckdashel of the New London Police says in the hours following the parade, they received calls from people experiencing unusual medical symptoms.
"They had experienced numbness on their tongue and cheek area after eating what they thought were the Tootsie Rolls from the parade,” Ruckdashel said.
The initial report stated the Tootsie Roll had an orange tint to it, Ruckdashel says, but he could not confirm if the candy was tainted or if the symptoms were caused by it.
Ruckdashel says no one has been hospitalized as a result of eating the candy.
"The symptoms were only temporary as far as we know, just lasted for an hour or more,” he said.
Police recommend not eating the candy and instead throwing it out or turning it over to the police department.
"We're holding it as evidence until we can get to the bottom of all of this,” Ruckdashel said.
The investigation is ongoing.
Copyright 2018 WLUK, Lisa Buehring via CNN. All rights reserved.
