A 46-year-old shipping and receiving clerk died from burns he received in an accident involving the ignition of diesel fuel. The victim’s duties included checking the level of fuel in the fuel tanks on refrigerated trailers that would be used the next day to transport processed product and refill the tanks if needed. On the night of the accident, he drove his fuel truck to where two refrigeration trailers were parked and got out of the truck to check the fuel levels. He approached the first truck and removed the fuel cap from the tank, setting it on the top of the tank. Since it was dark outside, he could not see the level of fuel inside the tank. He had a cigarette lighter in his pocket so he flicked on the lighter over the tank opening to illuminate the interior of the tank. When he did this, the diesel fuel ignited and sprayed diesel fuel on the victim. With his clothes on fire, he dropped to the ground and rolled in an attempt to put out the flames. When this did not work, he attempted to awake the driver of the second truck who was asleep inside the truck, but could not rouse him. He then walked approximately 550 feet, with his clothes still on fire, across the gravel parking lot to the plant where he climbed two flights of stairs and entered the maintenance shop. Employees in the maintenance shop were able to extinguish the flames and call emergency services. The victim was transported to a local hospital. He died two months later.
Fatal burns from Diesel Flash Fire (TN-OSHA #12-2009)
