Preschoolers are served Pine-Sol instead of apple juice at East Honolulu school

An East Honolulu preschool was inspected by the state Department of Health Tuesday after three students were mistakenly served Pine-Sol instead of apple juice.

The director of Kilohana United Methodist Church Preschool on Mahimahi Street in Niu Valley notified parents Tuesday that the children were served Pine-Sol accidentally after it was mistaken for apple juice because “it was the same color,” a Health Department food establishment inspection report said.

A state inspector spoke with the director, who said a classroom assistant was preparing the morning snacks of dry crackers and juice in the kitchen and saw a yellow/brown-colored liquid in a container on a cleanup cart in the kitchen.

The assistant returned to the classroom with the crackers and the liquid, then poured the liquid into cups as the classroom teacher watched students at the restroom, the report said.

The teacher smelled that it was not apple juice and stopped the students from drinking it, the report said.

Staff called police and paramedics after the incident.

Dustin Malama, spokesman for the Honolulu Emergency Services Department, said paramedics were sent to the school about 9:20 a.m. Tuesday for a report of someone drinking a poisonous substance. They evaluated three girls, two 5-year-olds and one 4-year-old, and saw no signs of trauma or sickness. He said the girls’ parents declined to have them taken to a hospital.

The school sent out a letter to parents notifying them of the incident, HawaiiNewsNow reported.

The letter said “only sips were taken” before the teacher stopped the students, the station said.

A food inspector responded to the school Tuesday afternoon and found the Pine-Sol was in the original container and was on a cart with no food items on it. A rubbish can and cleaning supplies were also on the cart, the report said.

The food inspector found the school had properly labeled and stored food items in the kitchen cabinets and no violation was found.

Kilohana inspection report by on Scribd