Charity fined $45,000 after student burned in science experiment
13 Mar 2025•BlueSafe Team•Source: WorkSafe VIC
Chabad Youth Limited has been fined $45,000 after a student suffered burns during an after-school science experiment in St Kilda East. The student and educator both required hospital treatment.
The Melbourne Magistrates' Court sentenced the organisation on Monday 3 March after it pleaded guilty to two charges of failing to ensure people other than employees were not exposed to health and safety risks. It was fined without conviction and ordered to pay $7,663 in costs.
The incident occurred in November 2022, when an educator engaged by Chabad Youth was running an experiment for several students in the charity’s after-school science club. The experiment involved adding baking soda and powdered sugar to sand soaked in isopropyl alcohol, then igniting the mixture with a lighter or match.
The court heard the educator appears to have lit a match before pouring the isopropyl alcohol. Some of the alcohol then splashed towards a student, immediately setting their upper body and arms alight.
The educator jumped onto the student to try to smother the flames. A fire extinguisher used afterwards made the blaze worse, before a fire blanket eventually extinguished it. Both the student and educator were admitted to hospital with burns.
An investigation found the experiment had not been risk assessed. Participants were also not wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), such as fire-resistant gloves and coats or aprons.
Chabad Youth admitted it was reasonably practicable to ensure the educator wore that PPE while carrying out the experiment. It also admitted students could have been kept at least two metres away, given the same PPE, or both.
WorkSafe Executive Director of Health and Safety Sam Jenkin said using hazardous materials required careful planning and consideration of potential risks. “Experiments using highly flammable substances can be an important educational tool but can have potentially catastrophic consequences if things go wrong,” Mr Jenkin said.
“It is the responsibility of every employer to ensure such activities are conducted in a safe and controlled manner to protect their workers, contractors and those in their care.”
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