4 University of Idaho students injured in explosion
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MOSCOW — Four University of Idaho students were rushed to the hospital Thursday night after a rocket exploded in a parking lot on the Moscow campus.
The incident happened around 11 p.m. next to the steam plant on Sixth Street, according to a university news release. Several people were gathered to test an experimental rocket when it exploded.
Grant Thurman, a member of the school’s Northwest Organization of Rocket Engineers, told the Moscow-Pullman Daily News that the explosion resulted from the club testing rocket fuel it had created.
“We were testing a new fuel design for the rocket engine and it we didn’t have reason to believe it would blow up or anything because it was a slow-burning fuel, but as soon as it was lit, it blew up,” Thurman told the paper.
The news release said the four injured students were taken to Gritman Medical Center and were alert and communicating early Friday morning.
The parents of the victims have been notified, and the Moscow Police Department is investigating. The FBI also responded to the scene.
Additional details are expected to be released Friday morning during a news conference.
Stay with EastIdahoNews.com for updates.