Utah College Student Trying To Make Rocket Fuel In Dorm Causes Explosion

A Brigham Young University student caused an explosion in a college dorm after trying to make homemade rocket fuel, police said. Now, 22 students living at Heritage Halls Building 4 have been displaced as a result to allow for clean up and repairs.

BYU police officers and Provo firefighters responded to a fire alarm around 4:30 p.m. Sunday at the dorm on campus. The fire sprinklers were activated and the main floor was flooding, BYU Police said in a Facebook post.

A resident was making homemade rocket fuel on the stove "when the volatile mixture suddenly exploded into a fireball. 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 said.

BYU Police called the student "Rocket Man" in a Facebook post.

There were no injuries. It's still unclear as to why the 22-year-old was making homemade rocket fuel, according to KUTV. "We don’t know (the motive) right now. We don’t have that answer today, until our investigation is done, of what he was actually going to with this," BYU Police spokesperson Jeff Long told KUTV.

"We want to thank Provo Firefighters, whose quick response helped contain the situation, as well as the many BYU employees who responded to help with clean up efforts and assisting the students who have been displaced. It is clear that this situation could have been much worse and we are grateful that no one was injured. We urge students to be aware of circumstances around them and consider how their actions have the potential to effect not just themselves, but others as well," BYU Police said.

This remains an active case. BYU Police reminds students to keep your experiments in the lab and to be supervised by trained professionals.