Science Experiment Fire Sends 6 Students, 1 Teacher to Hospital

Six Eastern High School students, 1 teacher, hurt in blast, according to the school’s website.

A science experiment gone bad sent seven people -- including six Eastern Regional High School students -- to the hospital Monday, according to the Eastern Camden County Regional School District’s website.

"A fire ball, and I can't say exactly how it happened," said Voorhees Police Chief Louis Bordi.

The school district stated in a press release that the fire broke out during a science classroom experiment early in the afternoon. For precautionary reasons, five students and one teacher were treated and released from Virtua Voorhees Hospital, according to the district.

Investigators say another student, an 11th grader, was burned and taken to Cooper University Hospital. Cooper didn't release his condition but did say he was transferred to another hospital for further evaluation.

Students at Eastern told NBC10 the fire alarms went off twice, once during the lunch hour and once as students returned to class. The students say they thought it was all part of a fire drill until fire trucks arrived.

"I was at lunch and then everyone ran outside," said senior Alex Neumann. "People smelled smoke. I knew a kid in the class and he filled me in on it."

"We saw the ambulance and then we realized it wasn't just a joke," said senior Etay Aroshas.

Investigators have not yet revealed what the experiment was or how the fire started. Students tell NBC10 it happened at a physics class consisting mainly of juniors. They also say some sort of rocket was the focus of the experiment.

"The fire commissioner kind of had it blocked off a little bit," said senior Bill Vogeitz. "But you could go to your locker if your locker was there. It wasn't too bad. Apparently just one computer was destroyed and a couple papers."  

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