OWINGS MILLS, Md. — An explosion at a Maryland school hurt three people Wednesday morning.
Two adults and one student were injured after an explosion at the smoke tower at McDonogh School in Baltimore County, officials said.
All three are expected to be okay.
Baltimore County Fire Department responded to the school in the 8600 block of McDonogh Road in Owings Mills around 8:30 a.m.
Officials said the two adults hurt were contractors working in the maintenance building where the smokestack is located, WJZ reported. The student hurt was hit by flying debris, but the school said his injuries were minor.
Parents were able to come pick their kids up at 11 a.m. and school officials closed the campus for the day.
“There was an explosion in the boiler room and the top portion of the smokestack crumbled to the ground,” Nina Sinnott, the school spokeswoman, told the Baltimore Sun in an email. The two contractors were servicing the boiler when the explosion happened.
According the school's website, McDonogh is a private, coeducational college preparatory school from kindergarten to twelfth grade.
In a statement on their website, the McDonogh School said the explosion happened while an outside contractor was working in the school’s boiler room.
At approximately 8:30 a.m., an explosion occurred in the school’s boiler room while work was being performed by an outside contractor. The explosion caused a partial collapse of the adjacent smokestack.
All students, faculty, and staff are safe. One student sustained a minor injury. The student was evaluated at a local hospital and released. Two outside contractors also sustained minor injuries, one of them was transported to a local hospital for evaluation as well.
The area of the explosion has been cordoned off. While the campus was deemed safe by first responders, McDonogh decided to take the safest course of action and students were dismissed at 11:00 a.m. All afternoon and evening activities are canceled.
We have contacted a structural engineer to assess the building and ensure that the surrounding area is safe.
This story has been updated, and WJZ contributed to this report.