SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A recently-pregnant Ozarks Technical Community College (OTC) student is suing the college, alleging she went into premature labor after being exposed to toxic chemical fumes from campus construction work this year.

The lawsuit was filed Thursday in Greene County Circuit Court on behalf of the student and her infant son through their next friend, Cameron L. Clark. OTC and DeWitt & Associates Inc. are listed as defendants.

The petition says the student was attending a math class on the third floor of an OTC campus building in late September this year when fumes from nearby construction allegedly filled the classroom.

The construction work, performed by DeWitt & Associates, is alleged to have involved chemicals, adhesives, solvents, and paints that emitted “toxic” vapors

See Full Page