CITY | STATE Chemicals burn students in school mishap
A science experiment goes up in flames outside a Memorial Villages-area day school, requiring a half-dozen students to be taken to the hospital for burns after chemicals landed on them.
A science experiment went up in flames outside a Memorial Villages-area day school Tuesday, requiring a half-dozen students to be taken to the hospital for burns after chemicals landed on them.
The students were injured shortly before 12:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Yellow School at Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church, in the 240 block of Blalock Road.
The young children were outside working on the experiment when it exploded, said Bob Giles, the business administrator for the church.
The blast caused pandemonium at the day school. Village Fire Chief David Foster said a halfdozen students were transported to the burn unit of Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital.
Another half-dozen children also were injured. They were picked up by their parents, who reportedly took them for treatment elsewhere.
“We just thank God that she’s OK and she didn’t get hurt,” said Alison Shanklan, whose 5-yearold granddaughter, Kate, was at the school during the explosion.
The girl described the lesson as a “fire experiment.” She and other students watched as an administrator changed the colors of the flames. Then she said there was a loud explosion. She recalled many of her classmates screaming and crying.
Those children taken to the hospital were in good condition Tuesday afternoon, said Me-
morial Hermann spokeswoman Rhiannon Collette. As of 4:30 p.m., all but one had been released from the hospital.
Parents were notified about the incident Tuesday afternoon. The school stayed open, but some parents later headed to the campus to pick up their kids.
“I’m not sure what happened,” said David Jalinski, who came to get his daughter, Morgan. “All I know is that there was an experiment and it scared some of the kids.”
The Yellow School provides programming for children age 3 through kindergarten, according to the school’s website.
“This incident will be investigated swiftly and thoroughly, and we will keep the congregation up to date as more facts emerge,” the school said in a statement on the website. “Our primary concern is the health and safety of our children, and The Yellow School asks for your prayers for the injured and their families, as well as staff and students.”
Wind may have played a factor in the explosion, Foster said.
The type of chemicals that landed on the students was not immediately released. The Houston Fire Department sent an additional ambulance to the school, said Senior Capt. Ruy Lozano.
The Yellow School will be open for normal hours Wednesday.