At 3:00 p.m. on August 18, 2022, an employee entered an empty liquid propane gas (LPG) tank for servicing at an industrial equipment wholesaler facility. Earlier in the day, the employee approached a supervisor and stated that he wanted to enter the tank to spray a penetrating oil product on an internal valve to loosen it overnight so it could be worked on the next day. The supervisor told the employee to wait until the next morning when the tank could be vented. The employee entered the tank by using a man-lift connected to a forklift and a ladder and was overcome by the vapor residue inside the tank. The employee was not wearing a respirator but had a blower nearby which was unused.
