Florida-1 dead, 2 seriously burned in treatment plant explosion
DAYTONA BEACH -- An explosion at a Daytona Beach water-treatment plant today reportedly killed one worker and critically injured two others with life-threatening burns.
Eric Johnson, 59, of Orange City, died, and Clyde Jones, 40, and Michael Martin, 42, both of Daytona Beach, were being treated for severe burns at Orlando Regional Medical Center, officials said.
Johnson, the lead plant maintenance mechanic, worked for the city since 1981.
Three other workers at the city's Bethune Point Treatment Plant were decontaminated and taken to Halifax Medical Center, but they didn't appear to have serious injuries, officials said. A female firefighter at the scene was taken to the hospital as a precaution after she experienced breathing problems.
The blast happened at about 11:15 a.m. while workers were using a cutting torch to make hurricane repairs to the metal roof of a shed containing two, 3,000-gallon tanks with toxic chemicals -- the apparent source of the explosion.
"The tanks were fully involved, flames shooting into the air,'' said Lt. John King with Daytona Beach Fire Department.
King said the torch may have caused the explosion and ensuing fire. The tanks themselves did not explode and were structurally OK after the blast, officials said.
Firefighters attacked the flames but had to fight it from a distance with unmanned hoses because of concerns about chemical vapors.
No one was evacuated from the area, but officials were monitoring the situation.
The nearest residence is a quarter of a mile away and the wind was blowing in the opposite direction, toward the Halifax River.
One worker sustained burns on 100 percent of his body, the other had burns over 80 percent of his body, officials said.
All of the injured workers were initially transported to Halifax Medical Center and then the two most seriously injured workers were airlifted to Orlando Regional Medical Center, which has a burn/trauma intensive care unit.. Officials said it was the gas inside one of the tanks that exploded.
They traced the explosion to the tank that contained the highly flammable methanol, which is occasionally used to "refresh" the filters that remove nitrogen from wastewater, said Jeff Prather, a spokesman for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which regulates such facilities.
The other had sodium bisulfate, which is used to remove chlorine, but that tank was nearly empty. Officials said the methanol tank contained a "substantial amount."
The plant remained operational after today's blast.
As of 3 p.m. today, the fire was out and the Volusia County Sheriff's Office's bomb disposal robot was sent in to take photos and air samples. After conditions were deemed acceptable, officials with the county's Hazardous Materials Unit suited up to inspect the area.
They found a "pinkie-sized" leak in plumbing around the methanol tank. The team used firefighter foam to neutralize the methanol and patch up that leak and a few small water leaks in the plumbing.
Eric Johnson, 59, of Orange City, died, and Clyde Jones, 40, and Michael Martin, 42, both of Daytona Beach, were being treated for severe burns at Orlando Regional Medical Center, officials said.
Johnson, the lead plant maintenance mechanic, worked for the city since 1981.
Three other workers at the city's Bethune Point Treatment Plant were decontaminated and taken to Halifax Medical Center, but they didn't appear to have serious injuries, officials said. A female firefighter at the scene was taken to the hospital as a precaution after she experienced breathing problems.
The blast happened at about 11:15 a.m. while workers were using a cutting torch to make hurricane repairs to the metal roof of a shed containing two, 3,000-gallon tanks with toxic chemicals -- the apparent source of the explosion.
"The tanks were fully involved, flames shooting into the air,'' said Lt. John King with Daytona Beach Fire Department.
King said the torch may have caused the explosion and ensuing fire. The tanks themselves did not explode and were structurally OK after the blast, officials said.
Firefighters attacked the flames but had to fight it from a distance with unmanned hoses because of concerns about chemical vapors.
No one was evacuated from the area, but officials were monitoring the situation.
The nearest residence is a quarter of a mile away and the wind was blowing in the opposite direction, toward the Halifax River.
One worker sustained burns on 100 percent of his body, the other had burns over 80 percent of his body, officials said.
All of the injured workers were initially transported to Halifax Medical Center and then the two most seriously injured workers were airlifted to Orlando Regional Medical Center, which has a burn/trauma intensive care unit.. Officials said it was the gas inside one of the tanks that exploded.
They traced the explosion to the tank that contained the highly flammable methanol, which is occasionally used to "refresh" the filters that remove nitrogen from wastewater, said Jeff Prather, a spokesman for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which regulates such facilities.
The other had sodium bisulfate, which is used to remove chlorine, but that tank was nearly empty. Officials said the methanol tank contained a "substantial amount."
The plant remained operational after today's blast.
As of 3 p.m. today, the fire was out and the Volusia County Sheriff's Office's bomb disposal robot was sent in to take photos and air samples. After conditions were deemed acceptable, officials with the county's Hazardous Materials Unit suited up to inspect the area.
They found a "pinkie-sized" leak in plumbing around the methanol tank. The team used firefighter foam to neutralize the methanol and patch up that leak and a few small water leaks in the plumbing.
