Torrance Fumes Prompt Seal Beach Alert : Environment: Officials noted a stench and urged people to go indoors. A chlorine-like odor made some schoolchildren ill 20 miles way.

Police with loudspeakers advised beach-goers and residents to go indoors Friday afternoon after a chlorine-like odor 20 miles away in Torrance made some schoolchildren ill.

Although there were no reports of illness outside the school, some folks in Seal Beach were sure they smelled a stench, and two of the Seal Beach officers who drove around warning people complained of burning eyes and nose irritation, said Emmy Day, a spokeswoman for the Orange County Fire Department.

“We do have what appears to be a stench out here, but half of it could be psychological,” said Lifeguard Capt. Steve Cushman, who announced warnings over a public-address system near the city’s pier. “It just smells pungent.”

Police and firefighters patrolled the streets, advising people to stay inside but assuring them that the reported gas release was not considered life-threatening.

That generated a flurry of phone calls to police and the media from nervous and confused residents. But officials said they were merely taking precautions.

“You can’t take any chances. What if something happened and we didn’t do anything?” Day said.

Authorities decided to warn Seal Beach residents after getting a report from fire officials in Torrance of an apparent chlorine release expected to waft over Long Beach and Seal Beach, Day said.

An unexplained chlorine-like odor had several dozen students at a Torrance church school complaining of headaches, nausea and sore throats Friday morning, but none suffered serious injuries, fire officials said.

About 42 grade schoolers were examined by fire personnel shortly after 10 a.m. Nineteen were taken to hospitals, but all were “evaluated and released with little or no problem, said Capt. Tim Marcy.

Firefighters who responded to the scene in Torrance also reported detecting an odor, but Marcy said tests failed to produce any evidence of hazardous chemicals.

“We think there was chlorine in the area, (but) it sounded a lot worse than it really was, I think,” Marcy said.

Meanwhile in Seal Beach, “People just stayed inside,” City Councilwoman Marilyn Bruce Hastings said.

“It was a little smelly, but it dissipated after a while,” she said. “Things got back to normal.”

Times correspondent Shelby Grad contributed to this story.