Woman Killed in OC School Explosion

A school custodian in Ocean City, N.J., seeking the source of a steam-pipe leak was killed when the pipe exploded.

A few administrators and custodians were in the building around 4 p.m. Tuesday when someone noticed that water was pooling in a hallway at the north end of the Ocean City Intermediate School, Superintendent Donald Dearborn said.

The custodian, Jean Siegfried of Upper Township, and others went to investigate the problem and the blast occurred a few minutes later.

Another custodian, Dan Henry, was being treated for steam burns at Shore Memorial Hospital in Somers Point.

Authorities evacuated and closed the school shortly after the blast occurred. The cause of the blast remained under investigation, and Dearborn said the extent of the damage caused by the blast has not been determined.

Siegfried, whose age was not available, had worked in the Cape May County district for more than five years, splitting her time between the Intermediate School and High School.

Her husband, Stephen, is a teacher at the Intermediate School.

Author: NBC 10/AP