Gases in The Media - June 2011 Archive

Company fined after gas cylinder explosion kills worker

17/06/2011

Ordered to pay £140,000 in fines and costs

An Edgware gas company has been fined after an explosion killed a worker and severely injured a member of the public.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Oak Farm Gas Company Ltd, (trading as Mr Fizz), after the incident at a site in New Denham, Buckinghamshire.

The gas firm specialises in the supply of high-pressure carbon dioxide, nitrogen and gas mixtures for licensed trade drink dispensers.

Uxbridge Magistrates' Court heard that Kerry Daly, 21, of Uxbridge in Hillingdon, was employed at Mr Fizz solely to fill empty gas cylinders with various types of pure and mixed gas. The high-pressure cylinders were normally brought to the workshop from customers' premises.

On the 19 June 2009, Maurice Kelly, a 45 year-old driver from Ealing brought a gas cylinder to Mr Daly from a pub in East London. As the valve fittings on the cylinder did not match those on the high pressure filling station, Mr Daly, who was working alone in the workshop, phoned a colleague to ask his advice.

Though Mr Daly was advised not to fill the cylinder he still attempted to do so and the cylinder exploded. Mr Daly was severely injured and died later that evening from his injuries. Mr Kelly had his leg amputated below the knee and suffered injuries resulting in him losing some function in both hands.

The HSE investigation showed the equipment at Mr Fizz's workshop was totally unsuitable for filling a low pressure gas cylinder. Mr Daly's training consisted solely of verbal instruction and there was no documentation of this, nor any written risk assessments.

HSE's Inspector Will Pascoe said:

"This incident was completely preventable. If sufficient training and instruction had been given then Kerry Daly's death would not have happened and Maurice Kelly would not have suffered life-changing injuries.

"Anyone who examines, refurbishes, fills or uses a gas cylinder should be suitably trained and have the necessary skills to carry out their job safely. Employees should understand the risks associated with the energy stored in high pressure gas cylinders and this incident should serve as a reminder of the dangers that this may pose."

Oak Farm Gas Company Ltd, trading as Mr Fizz, of Trinominis House, 125 -129 High Street, Edgware, Harrow pleaded guilty to breaching section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and regulations 4(3) and 8(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. The company was fined £90,000 and ordered to pay costs of £50,000.

HSE News 17 June 2011, release number COISE/1706

Notes to editors

1. The Health and Safety Executive is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to prevent death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice, promoting training, new or revised regulations and codes of practice, and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement. www.hse.gov.uk

2. Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 states: "It shall be the duty of every employer to conduct his undertaking in such a way as to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons not in his employment who may be affected thereby are not thereby exposed to risks to their health or safety."

3. Regulation 8(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 states: "Every employer shall ensure that all persons who use work equipment have available to them adequate health and safety information and, where appropriate, written instructions pertaining to the use of the work equipment."

4. Regulation 4(3) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 states: "Every employer shall ensure that work equipment is used only for operations for which, and under conditions for which, it is suitable."

Falmouth Docks hit by gas cylinder fire and explosions

17/06/2011

Adam Rivers heard the "thud" of the explosions. Photograph:Martin Perrett

The blaze at Falmouth Docks started at about 0810 BST among acetylene cylinders outside a warehouse. Witnesses reported hearing explosions.

The fire service said there were 240 cylinders, but many were empty.

Police set up an exclusion zone and about 150 people - including 60 students in an accommodation block - were moved out.

The Ships & Castles Leisure Centre was closed.

'Massive explosions'

There were no reports of injuries.

It was originally described by the fire service as a "major incident".

But Kevin Thomas of Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service said later: "It's moved from an aggressive state of incident and has reached a more stable state.

"But that's not to say things won't get worse again."

Emergency crews are to remain at the docks for 24 hours.

Emergency crews are expected to be at the docks for another day

Mr Thomas said crews would be cooling the cylinders and regularly checking their temperature.

Jamie Clark, who was staying about 60m (200ft) from the scene of the fire, said he was woken up by explosions.

"The building's fire alarm went off and they started evacuating people.

"Then there was some massive, massive explosions and we saw a big raging fire on top of these canisters."

Student Adam Rivers also said he heard loud noises after the fire started.

He said: "It was very, very distant, but there were some thuds."

Devon and Cornwall Police set up a command centre to deal with the incident.

Rest centres

Residents living near the docks were advised to keep doors and windows closed.

The Falmouth Hotel is a temporary rest centre, housing evacuees.

Cornwall Council also set up a respite centre at the town's Emmanuel Baptist Church.

The docks, which can handle ships with displacements of up to 100,000 tonnes, have repair facilities for vessels.

The site also provides mooring for cruise liners visiting the town. About 40,000 cruise passengers visit the town each year.

Organisers of the seventh annual Sea Shanty Festival in the town said the weekend-long event was going ahead, despite the cordon around the docks.

BBC News England, June 17, 2011 at 14:17

Redcar street evacuated in barbecue blaze

16/06/2011

A FAMILY barbecue sparked the evacuation of a street after flames got out of control.

Sixty people had to be evacuated from their homes in Redcar, east Cleveland, after a gas cylinder attached to a barbecue caught fire and threatened to explode.

Residents in 20 houses in Kendal Grove and Ambleside Avenue were evacuated over fears for residents’ safety.

Police set up a 200-metre cordon while fire crews extinguished the blaze.

The incident started at 7pm on Tuesday after Graeme Osborne, 33, of Kendal Grove, sat down with his family to enjoy a barbecue in his back garden.

Moments later, the gas cylinder caught fire.

Mr Osborne was with his daughter, Kiarne, seven, who had her neighbour and friend, Lilie-Mae Reid, round. His mother, Janette, 51, and her partner, Mick, were also there.

Mr Osborne said: “Mick lit the barbecue and food or something dripped on to the gas and it started hissing and blowing.

“Mick did blow the flame out, but it re-ignited twice as big. We got a wet towel and tried to put it out, but it was already up the wall.”

He added: “The kids weren’t bothered – they were playing on the grass. But I realised it was serious. I knew it could explode at any time.”

He called the fire brigade, who battled the 10ft flames.

Crew manager Steve Suggitt said: “It was raging. The family were perfect in what they did – they got out, went to the front garden and called us.”

He said the 11kg propane cylinder could have exploded, with deadly consequences, adding: “They can travel hundreds of yards when they do go off. If you are in the path of it, it could quite easily kill.”

He said it was not yet known whether the fire was started because of a fault with the cylinder or with the barbecue.

Lakes Primary School pupil Lilie-Mae said: “At first we all had to run inside, but then we had to go to the back of the pub at the end of the road.

“Some people were in their pyjamas and one lady had a towel on because she’d just got out off the bath.”

Residents were able to return home by 8.15pm.

CLOSE CALL: Graeme Osborne with the barbecue which caught fire and ignited the gas bottle beside it

The Northern Echo, 16th June 2011, 09:21

Fire at Oxfordshire scrapyard involving gas cylinders

09/06/2011

Crews have tackled a large blaze involving gas cylinders at a scrapyard in Oxfordshire.

Firefighters were forced to pull back when they discovered acetylene cylinders at the yard near to Crawley in Witney on Wednesday night.

The fire also involved tyres, oils and other materials and was eventually extinguished by about 40 firefighters.

Police closed a road near the site due to the presence of the cylinders. The fire is under investigation.

A fire service spokesman said: "The nature of acetylene makes it a dangerous gas when involved in a fire and we treat it with extreme caution in order to protect the public and our firefighting crews.

"On this occasion we needed to pull back, close the road and secure a safe perimeter in order to conduct firefighting operations without endangering the lives of the crews."

9th June 2011, 07:33

Banger racer talks about Lenwade gas cylinder explosion

06/06/2011

A stock car racer spoke today of how a fire in his workshop led to a gas cylinder explosion that resulted in families in the area being evacuated from their homes.

Fire crews tackled large fire in Thetford Forest

Father-of-one Carl Gould, 30, was in his workshop in Heath Close, Lenwade, near Norwich, on Sunday afternoon when sparks from a car he was working on set alight to another car parked outside and then caused the explosion.

A 200-metre exclusion zone was put in place after the explosion and homes and businesses in the village were without electricity until this evening.

A Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said that one crew cooling cylinders was still on scene today , and that an investigation into the blaze would follow.

Mr Gould, who works at a scrapyard, said: “I was working in my workshop, grinding up a car ready to weld it up.

“The door was open and some sparks ignited and started a fire in a Ford Capri just outside the workshop. My lorry was parked beside the Capri and when I got in the lorry to reverse it, I was burned.”

Mr Gould’s partner Sam Read, 25, who was inside the house at the time making outfits for an forthcoming motoring event, said it was just a freak accident.

She said: “We have got fire extinguishers in place for any accidents, and Carl tried to fight it, but in the end he had to ring the fire brigade.

“He suffered burned hands and the hair on his arms was singed, but he did not go to hospital. He was one of those blokes who plays down any injuries.”

She said the Ford Capri was completely destroyed and the blaze also damaged neighbouring fences and an electricity pole.

Miss Read added: “When I heard the explosion I ran out and tried to get everybody in Heath Close out of their homes. I also ran around the front onto the Fakenham road to see if there were any elderly people who needed help.”

At its height 22 firefighters were involved in tackling the blaze with crews from Reepham, Dereham, Earlham and Aylsham together with the water carrier from Hethersett called to attend.

Norfolk police carried out an evacuation of all the properties in Heath Close on Sunday, and a number between Heath Close and the A1067 Norwich to Fakenham Road, which was closed until about 5.30pm.

Residents who had been evacuated shortly after the blaze at 2.20pm had to wait until after 5pm on Sunday before the two remaining oxy-acetylene cylinders on the scene had been cooled sufficiently to allow most to return home.

People living in the three properties nearest the fire were not allowed home on Sunday evening for safety reasons.

David Bale, EDP24, 5.13pm Monday June 6, 2011