Police: Brigham Young University student causes explosion in dorm

A fire in a dorm kitchen at Brigham Young University caused “extensive damage” and displaced 22 residents Sunday afternoon, according to campus police. 

A student was brewing homemade “rocketfuel,” a potent mixed drink, on the stove when the mixture exploded into a “fireball” around 4:30 p.m. Sunday, BYU police said.

“The flames from the explosion had engulfed the walls and ceiling around the stove and the intense heat tripped the fire sprinkler system. Firefighters quickly secured the scene and were able to put out the remnants from the fire,” police wrote in a statement posted to Facebook.

Campus police are asking students to “keep your experiments in the lab and supervised by trained professionals.”

In a follow-up statement posted Monday to Facebook, police thanked the Provo (Utah) Fire Department and BYU employees for their assistance. They urged students to use this incident as a learning experience. 

“It is clear that this situation could have been much worse and we are grateful that no one was injured,” police wrote. “We urge students to be aware of circumstances around them and consider how their actions have the potential to affect not just themselves, but others as well.”