Laboratory Safety

Write a paragraph discuss about lab safety of the video link and the story 

Lab safety reflection Discussion Rubric

Item		Criteria	Points
The assignment is completed on time	12
Length of post	The post is at least 1 20 words (and does not exceed 200, though no penalty will be taken up to 25 0 words)	10
Based on your knowledge of Laboratory Safety, what do you think is dangerous in the pharaoh’s snake experiment? There are several things in this video that do not respect safety rules, you should be able to list them all. Be specific: generic statements will not earn a good grade (see example below).	The main hazard is identified (see instructor’s comments to example post). At least 2 more safety hazards are identified	18 15
In the story you read in the news article, what caused the accident? Which safety rules were not respected?  Be specific!	The main cause of the accident is identified correctly (the chemical used is mentioned)	25
specifically for chemistry experiments: if you had the power to change things, what would you do to avoid such incidents?	The answer is clear and relevant for chemistry experiments. The viewpoint is the student’s original prospective.	20

Maple Grove science experiment ends with

face on fire, chaos

Four Maple Grove Junior High students were hurt, one with serious burns, when their teacher

lighted methanol in class.

By Mary Lynn Smith and Abby Simons Star Tribune staff writers

December 1, 2011 — 10:52pm

Dane Neuberger was front and center when the classroom science experiment blew up, setting

his face on fire.

“I was on fire,” said 15-year-old Neuberger, who is being treated at Hennepin County Medical

Center in Minneapolis for second-degree burns to his face, neck and right hand. “People were

screaming, and everyone just ran out.”

Three other students treated for burns at the hospital were released.

Thursday morning, ninth-graders in the second-hour science class at Maple Grove Junior High

School had turned their desks toward the science table where teacher Matthew Achor conducted

experiments for the class final.

The first time the teacher dropped a match into a jug of methanol, Neuberger said the experiment

seemed to work. “It made a loud boom and a little flame,” he said. “Everyone thought that was

cool and clapped.”

https://www.startribune.com/mary-lynn-smith/6370588/

https://www.startribune.com/abby-simons/6370413/

Neuberger looked down at his paper to begin writing down his observations. “I’m pretty sure he

was starting it up to do it a second time,” Neuberger said. “And the next thing I know I’m on

fire.”

“The whole thing was confusion,” he said. “It hit my face and my chest. … I felt the heat of the

fire on my face.”

Neuberger said Achor immediately threw a fire blanket on him, extinguishing the fire on his

face. Neuberger pulled off his long-sleeve shirt, which was still on fire.

“It must have been a pretty big explosion because even papers around the room were on fire.

Kids got their hair burned. Yeah, it was terrible,” he said. “It was chaos. It was scary.”

Another science teacher came to the students’ aid, taking Neuberger to nurse’s office while they

waited for the ambulance to arrive. Neuberger said Achor talked to him, saying, “‘I’m so sorry.”

And then he tended to another injured student.

Achor, 61, couldn’t be reached for comment.

Neuberger said he was in shock when the fire hit him so he didn’t feel a lot of pain. But as he

waited for the ambulance, the pain overtook the shock. “It was unbearable. It just hurt so bad,” he

said. “It felt like I didn’t have my lips.”

Dr. Ryan Fey, a burn surgeon at the medical center, says it appears Neuberger suffered mostly

second-degree burns. Doctors will continue to observe him in case the burns evolve into more

serious injuries that would require skin grafts. If the burns heal normally in the next 10 to 14

days, scarring should be minimal, he said.

“Burns hurt,” Fey said. “They’re quite painful.”

Neuberger’s parents sat on each side of his hospital bed Thursday.

His father said the family is focused on his son’s recovery and not how the school handled the

situation or any possible missteps made by Achor.

“I’m sure he feels bad, he’s obviously a teacher; he likes kids. We’re not looking for blood from

him,” Gus Neuberger said. “But perhaps I think some policy changes and safety issues need to be

addressed.”

Maple Grove Fire Chief Scott Anderson said there was a “flash fire and it went out” as the

students “were doing an experiment they’ve been doing year after year.”

The flames on the students were extinguished with a “fire coat,” said Barbara Olson, a

spokeswoman for the Osseo School District. The burning papers were put out with a fire

extinguisher. The room was undamaged, and no sprinklers or alarms went off.

Anderson said that by the time firefighters crossed the street to the school from the station, “there

was nothing for them to do other than ventilate a little bit of smoke.”

With friends surrounding him in his hospital room, Dane Neuberger talked about the fire’s

aftermath. “I’m going to have to shave my head tomorrow,” he said, pointing out that his hair is

“all scorched.” On Thursday, he missed his first wrestling meet of the season and likely will miss

a few more.

For now, he’s not too keen about seeing himself in the mirror. “It’s kind of scary looking,” he

said. His swollen lips make it difficult to eat.

And that, he said, “sucks.”

Staff writer Paul Walsh contributed to this report. mlsmith@startribune.com • 612-673-4788

asimons@startribune.com • 612-673-4482

mailto:mlsmith@startribune.com

mailto:asimons@startribune.com