Who knew heating up hot chocolate could be so explosive?
Five students at Chicago's Northside College Prep High School were injured after their cooking class exploded around 10:30 a.m., Wednesday.
The Associated Press reported that students were reportedly cooking hot chocolate over a gas stove when the fuel source caught fire. Witnesses later described the incident as a "bright flash."
"There was a small cooking class going on, and it was powered by a butane fuel source, a small butane fuel source," Chief Patrick Brennan, Chicago Fire Department Deputy Dist., told WLS. "And, it seemed like it may have caught fire or heated up so much, that the product, which was just hot chocolate, let loose and burned some of the kids at school.
Authorities investigating the blast at the Chicago public school said that the "small fire" took place on a single-burner stove in the middle of students trying a "routine cooking instruction procedure."
"I don't know if you'd call it an explosion," Brennan said. "The product was possibly over-heated to the point it bubbled over, it splashed out."
Four students were taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, including one student who was reportedly afflicted with severe burns to the hands, arms, and face. Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said two students are reportedly in stable condition and another is reportedly in "good condition." One student declined treatment.
"The school responded immediately," Chicago Board of Education officials said in a statement. "All students were evacuated from school for a short time until it was determined that they could return safely."
All students in the class were supervised by a teacher when the gas suddenly ignited. The heat and flames were reportedly strong enough to cause the overhead water sprinkles to immediately turn on.
"Fortunately, the fire was doused immediately," added a fire department spokesperson.
About 1,000 people were briefly evacuated from Chicago's Northside College Prep High School before being allowed to return to their regular schedules.
