What was supposed to be a fun day at the museum turned into a disaster when an experiment went horribly wrong. INSIDE EDITION has the details.
Original Airdate: 9/5/14
It was a happy day at a museum as one scientist prepared to demonstrate a tornado effect to schoolchildren seated on the floor, but disaster was just minutes away.
She added methyl alcohol to boric acid and when she set it alight the mixture exploded!
It was total chaos. In video of the event, little children could be seen trying desperately trying to crawl away from the giant flame.
Jackie Rider was there with her two children. She captured heart-stopping video at The Discovery Museum in Reno, Nevada.
She told INSIDE EDITION, "It felt like a bomb exploded. Other children were screaming and running."
Just before the explosion, the scientist had spoken some eerily prophetic words to the kids, saying, "Why am I wearing a lab coat? To protect me, right, just in case the fire goes crazy!"
The scientist successfully created two fire tornadoes before things went horribly wrong. The matter is still under investigation.
Dr. Kiki Sanford told INSIDE EDITION, "Ideally, she should have not added alcohol to the lit cotton balls. Adding alcohol to a lit source is adding a recipe for that kind of disaster."
Bill Nye “The Science Guy” showed INSIDE EDITION just how volatile methyl alcohol can be.
He said, "There's potential for danger. If you get it on your hair or your clothing, you'd be on fire."
A total of 13 people were injured in the blast, including eight children. Rider’s two children were treated for second degree burns on their hands and legs.
A dreadful ending to what was supposed to be a fun day at the science museum.
