Student Suffers Burns, Needs Plastic Surgery After Classroom Experiment Goes Awry

A Georgia teacher is under fire for presenting a dangerous experiment to her class that ended up going terribly wrong. Instead of an exciting experiment, students looked on in horror as a fire became"out of control" and seriously injured a student.

CBS Atlanta affiliate WGCL-TV identified the high school teacher as Bridgette Blowe, and that she reportedly "froze in pure shock" when the fire leaped across the desk and set her student — who was in the front row — ablaze.

According to reports, witnesses say the student, 16-year-old Malachi McFadden, had his head down and wasn’t aware of the fire coming toward him. The student was hospitalized with third-degree burns on his face, neck and torso after the "burning money demonstration." The incident took place at Redan High School, which is located near the outskirts of Atlanta.

According to WGCL-TV, McFadden’s representative claimed that Blowe didn't give student protective equipment, nor advise the student to stand 10 feet away from the flame, which is mandated by safety protocol.

According to reports, Blowe, 36, has claimed that she had successfully done the demonstration in the past. The experiment includes lighting an accelerant-soaked bill on fire. However, in this particular class, the flame didn't appear to burn out completely. In her statement, Blowe wrote, "so I attempted to extinguish the flame with water, but I reached for the alcohol instead, by mistake."

Blowe claimed the glassware was mislabeled. However the report sayid it was unclear whether she was trying to put the fire out or "trying to make the flames larger so that students could see the flame." According to reports it is unclear as to whether the use of water or alcohol was accidental.

Reports indicate that Blowe had violated district standards, and that Regional Superintendent Sean Tartt recommended Blowe be fired. However, Principal Janice Boger recommended she be suspended and receive training on classroom safety instead. Blowe has been put on administrative paid leave and no disciplinary actions have been filed since the accident. Currently the district is "reviewing training and safety protocols for its science labs."

McFadden’s lawyer told news outlets that they will most likely sue for damages to cover the student’s pain and suffering, as well as past and future medical costs. McFadden will need plastic surgery. "The only thing for them to do is to accept responsibility for it," said McFadden’s lawyer.

Many students have been injured in the last few years during such classroom experiments. In 2014, a Manhattan student was left with over 31 percent burns. The student was later awarded $60 million in damages for pain and suffering.