A chemical spill in a chemistry classroom has led to the evacuation and then closure of Hastings High School and Farragut Middle School on Thursday.

About 1,200 people were evacuated after the incident.

The superintendent said nitric acid spilled from an equipment failure as a container gave out. The teacher and another chemistry teacher immediately responded.

Some students received medical treatment from the school nurse, while others were taken to the hospital as a precautionary measure.

Police initially reported that four students and two teachers went to the hospital. The district says three students and a teacher required medical attention - and all are OK.

Parents say they were notified by email and text messages saying to check the school’s emails.

But some say the state’s new bell-to-bell cellphone ban only made them more worried.

"You can't contact your kid if you ban cellphones. I could've found out at 10 a.m. what was going on. She would've called me. It's ridiculous,” says parent Darrick Leacock.

The school district uses pouches to store cellphones.

Others say they weren’t as worried because the school notified them, and the community was talking about it.

"I know she'll get it tomorrow. It's probably in the classroom, so no, I mean, most important is she's out of the school,” says parent Maia Dunkel.

Students weren’t allowed back in the building after dismissal. The superintendent says the students whose phones are locked away in the school won’t be able to get them until Friday.

“With the amount of helicopters, all the rest, you could have families rushing to the site,” says Superintendent William McKersie. “That is the worst thing to happen in an emergency. This was very manageable, it would’ve been far more difficult if we had a lot of families.”

The Westchester County Hazmat team responded to the scene.

Both schools were closed for the day at 1 p.m. high school students were allowed to walk home, while middle school students needed to be picked up from Reynolds Field.

After-school activities for the day were canceled.

Classes will resume as scheduled Friday, Sept. 5.

Now, school officials are reviewing what happened and how they can prepare in the future.