The State : Physicist Hurt in Explosion

A chemical explosion at University of California, Santa Barbara, injured a visiting German physicist and damaged two laboratories, fire officials said. The scientist, Wolfgang Meier, 31, received a cut on his head when struck by glass following the explosion on the fourth floor of the chemistry building. The strong explosion blasted through a lab wall and into a hallway. The impact also spilled dangerous chemicals inside an adjoining lab, but Fire Department spokesman Keith Cullom said everything appeared stable about two hours after the explosion. Several people inside the building were evacuated as a precaution.