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b.c. teacher suspended after dry-ice demo sparks classroom explosion
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a b.c. teacher in the southeast kootenays was suspended for letting sixth-graders and kindergarten students handle dry ice without safety equipment and adequate supervision, causing a small explosion that left a hole in the ceiling.
david william popoff, a grade 6 teacher, had his teaching certificate suspended by the school district for 10 days. he also faces an additional two-day suspension in june levied by the b.c. commissioner for teacher regulation.
the dry-ice explosion occurred in october 2024 when popoff brought in dry ice — the solid, frozen form of carbon dioxide — without permission from the school into a classroom.
in one instance, popoff demonstrated the use of dry ice to a mix of grade 6 and kindergarten students. despite dry ice being extremely cold and could cause burns or frostbite, popoff told the grade 6 students they could handle the ice with their bare hands.
the students were divided into mixed-age groups, and had cups or containers containing dry ice. he then briefly left the room, leaving an education assistant in the classroom.
“one student put dry ice in a water bottle and closed the lid,” said the consent resolution agreement. “the water bottle exploded and shot upwards into a ceiling tile. the bottle left a hole in the ceiling tile and left shards around the room.”
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some students and an education assistant got wet due to the explosion, and some students were scared by the incident. no one was injured.
when asked by the district about the incident, popoff appeared unremorseful, and downplayed the seriousness of the safety concerns and blamed the student for the explosion. he told the district he wouldn’t change anything if he were to teach the same lesson again, but acknowledged he might feel differently if someone had been hurt.
the regulator said popoff didn’t follow safety guidelines, which require the use of gloves, safety glasses and protective clothing, as well as adequate ventilation when handling dry ice. it said popoff didn’t provide any protective equipment to the students who were given access to dry ice, and that popoff, in a separate incident the day before the explosion, also handled dry ice with his bare hands and put it in his mouth during a class demonstration.
in the consent resolution agreement, popoff admitted his conduct constituted professional misconduct.
commissioner donnaree nygard suspended popoff for two days, which takes effect june 17 and 18.
in making the determination, nygard said popoff “created an unsafe environment” by failing to follow safety guidelines for handling dry ice and demonstrated “inadequate regard for students’ developmental maturity and emotional and physical safety.”
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