Science Experiment Goes Awry in Berlin, CT, High School
By Natalie Demaree
Source Merced Sun-Star (Merced, Calif.) (TNS)
A student and a staff member were hospitalized after a science experiment malfunctioned and caused a dangerous gas leak at a Connecticut high school, authorities said.
Firefighters responded to the reported gas leak at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 13, at Berlin High School and evacuated students and staff, the town’s Fire Chief Jonn Massirio said in a news release.
The experiment used nitric acid and copper pennies to produce nitrogen dioxide in what was supposed to be a closed loop system, Massirio said.
“The malfunction involved a tube within the system breaking, causing the gas to enter the atmosphere,” he said.
Nitrogen dioxide can be harmful to the respiratory system, causing inflammation of the airways, coughing, wheezing and reduced lung function, according to the American Lung Association.
Two people, a student and a staff member, were taken to the hospital after feeling symptoms of dizziness and eye and throat irritation, according to the release. Fourteen other students were evaluated and released back to class.
“No one really knew whether it was a drill or not,” Katarina Pauley, a Berlin High School junior, told WFSB. “We later found out while we were outside, that one of the gas things that weren’t supposed to be pulled, got pulled and there was like a gas leak.”
Fire responders took the experiment outside, and the reaction subsided naturally, while the rest of the gas was cleared from the building using mechanical ventilation.
Students and staff were let back in the building shortly after, and the school notified parents of students impacted, Massirio said.
McClatchy News reached out to Berlin High School on Nov. 14 but did not receive an immediate response.
The two hospitalized have not been named, and no updates have been made on their health.
Berlin is about a 10-mile drive southwest from Hartford.
Science experiment explodes, severely burning 12-year-old, NC dad says. ‘Horrific’
18-year-old found dead with friend after attending family party, AZ officials say
‘True community hero.’ 18-year-old parks employee dies battling NY forest fire, cops say
___
(c)2024 the Merced Sun-Star (Merced, Calif.)
Visit the Merced Sun-Star (Merced, Calif.) at www.mercedsunstar.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
