A chemistry demonstration at Dinwiddie High School in Virginia turned into an explosion, sending three students, as well as their teacher, to local hospitals, fire and EMS authorities said.
The incident occurred in a second-period chemistry class Wednesday morning.
The science teacher was attempting to make a water bottle fly across the room using methanol and a flame, the Daily Mail reported.
Senior Beth Piland was also in the classroom and described the events to WTVR-TV, a Richmond CBS affiliate.
“I saw my friends start burning,” Ms. Piland said.
The student said one of her friends was significantly injured.
“His hair was crispy. His skin was peeling and his lip was busted,” Ms. Piland said.
In a nearby classroom, Alonna Perkins said she knew something had occurred when she heard rumbling and the fire alarm, according to WWBT-TV, a Richmond NBC affiliate.
“It sounded like somebody was coming through the wall, like a really large fight. The fire alarm went off and that’s when we knew something had happened with fire,” Ms. Perkins said.
Dinwiddie County Fire & EMS arrived at 9:28 a.m., having received reports of a fire at the school as well as a notification from the school’s fire alarm. By then, all students and staff had been evacuated, and the fire had been extinguished.
Three students had sustained burn injuries, and “were immediately treated by EMS personnel and transported to VCU Medical Center in Richmond. One student was transported by air medical helicopter and two by ground ambulance,” Dinwiddie Fire & EMS said in a statement on Facebook.
Another student was treated on-site for a minor burn and released. The teacher was transported to a local hospital for his own burn injury.
Dinwiddie County Sheriff’s Office, Dinwiddie County Fire & EMS, and the State Fire Marshal’s Office are investigating the chain of events before the fire, and further details on the conditions of the students and the teacher were unavailable, the statement said.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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