Four people, including three students, hurt in Dinwiddie High chemistry classroom fire
DINWIDDIE — Three students and one teacher were injured Wednesday morning when a so-called "demonstration" inside a chemistry classroom resulted in a fire.
School officials reported the incident shortly before 9:30 a.m., according to a statement emailed by the Dinwiddie County school administration.
"On October 12, 2022, there was an incident that was confined to a chemistry classroom where a demonstration was taking place," the statement said. "The fire alarm was pulled and all students were immediately evacuated out of the building to their designated safe areas."
The school system immediately began notifiying the community through social media.
Today during 2nd second block there was an incident that was confined to a chemistry classroom at Dinwiddie County High school. All students were immediately evacuated. Law enforcement is currently investigating the situation and more information is forthcoming.
— Chuck Moss (@dcpsmoss) October 12, 2022
The decision was made to let all DCHS students go home at 11:15 a.m.
Two students in the classroom were taken to VCU Medical Center in Richmond for treatment of their injuries. A third student was treated at the scene. One teacher was taken to a local hospital for treatment.
School officials are withholding their conditions as of time of publishing.
"The exact chain of events leading up to the fire remains under investigation at this time," the school statement read. That investigation is being done jointly by the county sheriff's office, the Dinwiddie Fire & EMS department, and the state fire marshal's office.
However, the sheriff's department confirmed early Wednesday it was not taking part in the investigation.
Authorities decided to close the school Thursday and let students take lessons remotely Thursday and return to in-person learnng Friday. Support teams will be available at the school Friday for any students or staff members.
Dinwiddie High principal Robbie Garn read a statement to reporters gathered at the adjacent Dinwiddie Middle School early Wednesday afternoon thanking the school's parents and community for their support. Garn said the school "was working diligently to ensure the safety of all of our students and staff."
Garn did not answer any questions about the incident at the request of law enforcement, he claimed, and deflected all media inquiries to the sheriff's office.
The fire drew an immediate response from state Del. Kim Taylor, a Republican representing Dinwiddie. In it, she thanked the first responders and the school community for keeping it from becoming more catastrophic.
“The horrific incident that occurred at Dinwiddie High School today is the fear of every parent. When we send our children to school, we expect them to come back home safely," Taylor said, adding, “My heart breaks for the students who were injured and I am sending my thoughts and prayers to them and their families.”
Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on Twitter at @BAtkinson_PI.
This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Dinwiddie school students, teacher injured in chemistry classroom fire