Welding / Hotwork Accidents 8

Hotwork Accidents #8

This page was last updated on 05/06/2010

 

Fire races through apartment complex
By Sarah Schulte
January 25, 2003 (Downers Grove) — More than a dozen apartments in Downers Grove were damaged after a fire broke out in a unit that neighbors say was in the process of being remodeled. The blaze left 100 people homeless. The fire department will not confirm an exact cause, although neighbors believe it had something to do with a blow torch. Over all some 25 suburban fire departments were brought in to battle the blaze. At the height of the fire flames could be seen shooting out of second-floor windows and the roof. Neighbors say they believe the fire may have been triggered by work crews using a blow torch. One witness told ABC7, “I got here before the first fire truck came along. Apparently someone was sweating pipes or something in the bathroom and they dropped the blow torch and it just started up and just spread over there, too. I’m just hoping the brick wall right there is going to hold up so it doesn’t burn my apartment down.” Soon smoke engulfed the whole area, forcing the evacuation of more than a den units. While some animals were injured in the fire, fortunately no human beings were injured, although there are plenty of people left homeless. Some of those people were put on buses to keep warm. The red cross was on hand to make sure people have shelter.

Demolition slated to begin
Updated: 1/25/2003 11:23 AM By: Mike Crispino
The row of homes on Livingston Avenue destroyed by Friday’s fire are being demolished. Friday afternoon, six homes on the 800 block caught fire. Fire investigators said the fire started after someone tried to unthaw pipes in their home with a blow torch and it quickly spread from there. Later in the evening, as firefighters continued to put out the flames, the roofs collapsed into the second floors. One resident said “Woke up, saw smoke coming out of my vent in the wall.” “I’ve been in this house for 30 years. My mother lived in this house. I grew up here,” said Deborah Ellis. Decades of memories, lost. A fire ripping through the lives of almost a dozen families. Deborah Ellis has called 811 Livingston Avenue home since she was a child. Ellis said,”Very sad. My pictures and everything are gone. You can’t replace them.” Firefighters battled a multiple alarm blaze and sub zero windchills. There was ice dangling from wires and billowing smoke was made worse by blustery winds. Several fire fighters huddled together to prevent the fire from spreading further, hosing down a neighboring building. Chief Michael Dunn said, “Firefighters are all set, rotating them in and out to go down and get warm bringing new guys in. Mutual aide from Troy, Cohoes, Watervliet.” The Red Cross was also on scene, comforting families forced out on the street. Donna Diviney of the Red Cross said, “We’re gonna find them a place to stay for the night, get them emergency clothing, emergency food, that sort of thing. Then we’re going to sit down with them and see what we can do about getting them resettled.” While Deborah Ellis lost almost everything, her husband was able to save the family dogs, sliding down a snow covered hill in a dramatic rescue; one small piece of good news. Ellis said, “My dogs are out. That’s all I care about, my dogs.”

Salinas restaurant evacuated for fire
ASalinas restaurant was evacuated Friday when a small fire broke out in a ventilator duct on the roof. Elli’s Restaurant, a new business at 1250 S. Main St., was cleared out at 1:40 p.m. after someone noticed smoke billowing from the roof. Salinas fire Capt. Brett Loomis said roofers were using a torch on a repair when a spark caused a small fire in a filter. Loomis said the heat melted a plastic motor casing, burning a filter inside. The business was evacuated for about 20 minutes, while firefighters put out the fire. Damage was minimal

Fire shuts down Dothan poultry plant
The Associated Press January 25, 2003
A fire at a Perdue Farms Inc. poultry plant Saturday damaged equipment and left nearly 1,000 employees temporarily without work. Approximately 15 maintenance workers were at the poultry plant when the blaze started on the first floor at around noon, said Capt. Ed Roberts of the Dothan Fire Department. None of the workers were injured and it was unclear how the fire began. Firefighters contained the fire after two hours and capped an unrelated ammonia leak that prompted optional evacuations in surrounding neighborhoods. Roberts said the blaze was possibly started by sparks from a grinder that maintenance workers were using. Perdue Farms is the fifth largest employer in Houston County. 

UPDATE Faulty methane checking may be to blame for mine explosion 
Sunday, January 26, 2003 By Don Hopey, Post-Gazette Staff Writer 
Investigators say that Wednesday’s fatal explosion in a ventilation shaft at the McElroy Mine in West Virginia may have occurred because workers failed to properly monitor methane levels at the bottom of the 940-foot-deep hole. And the presence of “two different atmospheres” — one with explosive levels of methane and one without — could have complicated the testing. Monitoring methane, a combustible gas that is common in underground coal and rock formations in the area, is required by state and federal law. Doug Conaway, director of the West Virginia Office of Miners’ Health, Safety & Training, said a pocket of methane trapped behind a metal barrier used to form concrete around the inside of the 24-foot-diameter hole may have been ignited by an acetylene torch being used to cut a hole in the form. “Before a torch is struck or a flare lit the law requires a methane examination. If there’s any kind of flammable atmosphere you’re not to strike that torch,” Conaway said. “Here there were sealed off areas behind the forms so they were looking at two different atmospheres. If a proper examination was made, it should have revealed the explosive atmosphere.” Although investigators initially found no indication that any methane monitor had been used at the bottom of the shaft, they found one Thursday in the pocket of a coat taken from injured crew boss Richard Brumley, 51, of Waynesburg, Greene County, before he was flown to Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh on Wednesday. The air shaft construction project at the mine, owned by a subsidiary of Consol Energy of Pittsburgh, was contracted to Central Cambria Drilling Co. of Ebensburg, Cambria County, which has done numerous similar ventilation shaft projects for the mining company at its Bailey, Enlow Fork and Eighty Four mines in Pennsylvania. The active workings of the mine were about 1,200 feet from the accident site and were not affected. Conaway said the pocket of methane might have been trapped in a “water ring,” a 4-foot-deep, 4-foot-tall hollow circular channel dug periodically into the sides of the shaft to collect water and keep it from running down the inside of the shaft. The water rings can be pictured as giant, hollow doughnuts spaced periodically from the surface to the bottom of the shaft, with the shaft forming the holes of the doughnuts. “That was the area they were working on,” Conaway said. The workers had a metal form between them and the water ring, he said, and, “They had a metal door in the form, and I think they were removing it to gain access to the water ring.” Conaway said state investigators finished collecting evidence at the blast site Friday afternoon. They went to the bottom of the ventilation shaft to map the blast site and take photographs. Interviews with two of the three surviving miners were to take place yesterday. “Everything we know so far clearly points to methane as the cause,” Conaway said. “I’m confident we had a methane explosion. The workers were at the bottom of the shaft and the acetylene torch could have provided the ignition source.” Killed in the accident were Richard E. Mount, 37, of Shadyside, Ohio; David W. Abel, 47, of Belmont, Ohio; and Harry P. Roush III, 23, of Colver, Cambria County. Injured in the blast were Aaron Meyer, 28, of Cameron, W. Va.; Benjamin Bair, 23, of Pentress, W.Va.; and Brumley. Meyer was treated at a West Virginia hospital. Brumley was upgraded from serious to fair condition Friday and moved out of the burn unit in Mercy Hospital. Bair remains in critical condition in Mercy and has undergone multiple operations. 

Plumbing accident sparks 2-alarm fire
William Kaempffer, Register Staff January 23, 2003 
NEW HAVEN — A plumbing mishap sparked a two-alarm fire in the city’s Hill section that left five people temporarily homeless. The blaze at 126 Plymouth St. caused considerable damage to the 2½-story house and began in a second-floor closet, fire fighters said. Neighbor Angie Castillo said she saw the heavy smoke outside and saw heavy flames after she opened her window. “I opened the window and I saw fire, so I called 911,” Castillo said. Assistant Fire Chief Michael Grant said the fire started in the closet and quickly extended to the third floor. Five residents, including three children, were put up by the American Red Cross. A plumber using a torch to work on pipes apparently started the fire accidentally. Leith Fraser, the plumber, said water pipes froze and then burst after the furnace stopped working. The owner hired him to fix the plumbing and he was doing that when the fire started. He said he was welding in a new section of pipe when he started smelling smoke. They tried to put out the flames with water but called the fire department when they were unsuccessful. 

Dresses burn after welding accident
LONG BEACH Hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of dresses went up in flames after a welding accident on a tractor-trailer at the Port of Long Beach, an official said. Sunday, January 19, 2003 – A cargo container containing about $1.2 million worth of dresses was attached to a trailer, which was being repaired. A heat transfer caused some of the dresses to catch fire about noon Saturday, said Wayne Chaney of the Long Beach Fire Depart ment. Firefighters used foam to extinguish the blaze, and used a ventilation system to prevent smoke from damage the remaining clothes, he said. The actions saved about 75 percent of the dresses, which were bound for a Carson business, Chaney said. David Rogers

Three Killed, Three Injured in Air Shaft Explosion Near Mine 
Location: Cameron, W.Va. Posted: January 22, 2003 1:18 PM EST From NewsChannel 8 News:
An explosion killed three people digging an air shaft for a coal mine early Wednesday and injured three others, two seriously, officials said. The workers were about 1,000 feet underground when the explosion occurred about 1 a.m. The shaft was not connected to an active mine. It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the blast at the McElroy Mining Co. operation, however officials were investigating whether there could have been a buildup of methane gas, said Tom Hart, Marshall County’s emergency services director. The 24-foot-wide air shaft was being dug toward a coal seam that is known for releasing methane, officials said. “They use explosives to break up the rock and take it out. They use acetylene torches to cut metal and do work. There could be any number of things that could cause this,” said Thomas Hoffman, vice president of public relations for Pittsburgh-based Consol Energy, which owns McElroy Mining Co. Mercy Hospital spokeswoman Linda Ross in Pittsburgh said a 51-year-old worker was in serious condition with second-degree burns to his face and hands, puncture wounds and a concussion, and a 23-year-old was in critical condition with second-degree burns, multiple fractures and internal injuries. The third survivor “essentially walked away,” said Terry Farley, administrator of the state office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training. Farley said he wasn’t sure how the three made it out. The bodies of the three workers killed in the explosion remained in the air shaft Wednesday morning in the Navoo Ridge in West Virginia’s Northern Panhandle, Hoffman said. Their identities were not immediately released. The bottom of the shaft was several thousand feet from the active McElroy mine, so the mine wasn’t affected, he said. Operations there continued Wednesday. The workers’ employer, Central Cambria Drilling of Ebensburg, Pa., could not immediately be reached for comment. Company president Jack Williamson was at the site of the accident and phones there were not working, said a woman who answered the phone at the company headquarters. They were the first mine-related fatalities in West Virginia in 2003, Farley said. The state had six mining deaths in 2002.

Fires ravage two homes 
Tuesday, January 21, 2003 By SEAN C. McCULLEN Staff Writer 
BRIDGETON — Two house fires in the city Monday afternoon were quickly brought under control by the Bridgeton Fire Department, but both have left the victims displaced for the time being. The fire department received their first call to duty Monday at 12:13 p.m. when a neighbor reported a fire at 131 South Ave. The fire was declared under control at 12:45 p.m., according to fire investigator Gene Shelton. “The quick response from the fire department and the fact that a neighbor called in the one on South Avenue saved it from totaling the whole house and pretty much kept it to a small area,” Fire Chief David Schoch said. No one was home at the time of the fire, which Shelton said has been ruled accidental. The fire department was once again called to action at 3:21 p.m. for a reported trash can on fire at 19 Rose St. But once firefighters arrived to the scene, they discovered it was more than a mere trash can on fire — the blaze had quickly spread to the rear wall of the house. The Rose Street fire was declared under control at 3:53 p.m., according to Schoch, but left a large section of the wall and a window severely damaged. Two children and their baby-sitter were at the Rose Street residence when the fire started, but no one was injured. “The fact that the smoke detectors were there and in working order helped avert a much bigger problem,” Schoch said. The South Avenue fire started when tar, which had been applied to the roof earlier in the day, leaked down through cracks in the roof into the home’s walls. Schoch said the residents finished sealing the roof with a blow torch, which apparently caused the tar to catch fire. The tar leaked down into the walls, slowly burning, and was further fueled by the home’s wood. The South Avenue victims were given contact information for the Red Cross in the event they could not find a place to stay while the necessary repairs are made to their home. Shelton said five adults and two children live there. A Red Cross spokesperson said Monday afternoon the organization had not been contacted. The victims of the Rose Street fire were supposed to begin staying at another residence owned by realtor Bob Thompson today. “We usually have enough empty houses to put them up,” Thompson said. “In an emergency, we can take care of people, too.” Thompson, who said he is also providing temporary lodging to a family displaced Saturday by a fire at a property of his on Cedar Street, said the victims were planning to stay with friends or family last night. He said the victims could move into a property he owns on Bank Street once city officials inspect it for occupancy approval. Schoch said the fire department was assisted at both fires by the Bridgeton Emergency Ambulance Association and the Office of Emergency Management. The Hopewell-Stow Creek Fire Department joined the effort at the South Avenue fire and the Gouldtown Fire Department assisted on Rose Street. Schoch said the two departments, as well as the Fairton Fire Department and Upper Deerfield Fire Department No. 3, are part of a mutual aid agreement with his department. The agreement requires four departments to respond to any fire within a designated quadrant of the city between the hours of 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. The city fire department likewise responds to any fires in those municipalities during the 12-hour span. After 6 p.m., the departments call in any additional help they may need. 

Torch blamed for fire in city building
By John Davis Poughkeepsie Journal
City of Poughkeepsie firefighters believe a propane torch meant to thaw out pipes started a fire Saturday evening that heavily damaged a historic apartment house on Union Street. No one was hurt during the fire, which caused the residents of the approximately six apartments to evacuate the building. The fire, which started about 5:45 p.m., quickly spread, doing substantial damage to the rear of a white clapboard house with green shutters in the city’s historic district, in the vicinity of the Mid-Hudson Bridge. The house at 201 Union St. is just west of the corner of Grand Street, where St. John the Baptist Catholic Church stands. City of Poughkeepsie firefighters quickly doused the flames, which were spectacular against the night sky. ”I saw the whole thing going up. I saw it on my back porch,” said Barbara Thorne of Main Street, who hurried over to the nearby fire scene. ”I saw the fire, the flames.” By 6:30 p.m., firefighters had doused the flames, but continued monitoring the smoking building, illuminated by spotlights. City of Poughkeepsie Deputy Fire Chief Ed Decker said his preliminary prognosis was ”some kind of a propane torch” started the blaze. ”The owner was thawing out some pipes,” in the wall in between the kitchen and bathroom in an apartment, Decker said. The fire spread quickly throughout the rear of the old structure, built in the late 1800s, Decker said. The second floor was most damaged by the fire, which burned parts of the first floor and attic. ”There’s heavy smoke throughout,” Decker said of likely smoke damage. 

Man severely burned in accident
Last Updated: Jan. 15, 2003
Town of Delafield – A Dousman man was in serious condition Wednesday after he was severely burned in an industrial accident, officials said. Michael J. Mogensen, 54, was taken to the burn center at Columbia St. Mary’s, Milwaukee Campus, with second- and third-degree burns to his face, hands and arms, Fire Chief Dean Richards said. Richards and Waukesha County Sheriff’s Detective Steve Pederson gave the following account: A crew from Ideal Masonry Inc. was pouring a concrete basement for a home near Lexington Lane and Fairfield Way. An oil used to pour over the frames during the construction process was too thick to use because of the low temperatures. So Mogensen, the company’s owner, was in a truck about 10:45 a.m. using a torch connected to a 100-pound propane tank next to the truck to warm a 50-gallon pressurized tank containing 25 gallons of the oil. The heat caused the tank to ignite. Mogensen’s employees pulled him out of the truck and away from the fire. They also put out the flames burning his upper body. “This man is the luckiest guy in the world,” Richards said. “A little bit more fire or if his employees hadn’t been there to pull him out, he wouldn’t be here.”

Fire breaks out at Taiwan’s skyscraper under construction
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP): A fire broke out Thursday at the construction site of what architects say will be one of Asia’s tallest skyscrapers. No one was injured as workers were quickly evacuated, officials said. Smoke belched from the ceiling of a shopping mall that is part of the partially built Taipei Financial Center, which will be 408 meters (1,347 feet) tall when completed, officials said. Vice Taipei Mayor Ou Chin-der said the fire might have been ignited when workers using welders let sparks fall on waterproof materials in the structure. The mall is scheduled to open in September. “The fire is under control. No one was injured,” Ou said. Last April, five construction workers were killed when a magnitude 6.8 earthquake dislodged two cranes from the top of the 60th floor. The 101-storey building is supposed to be completed in about a year. So far, 78 floors have been built.

Fire forces evacuation at Torrington Company plant
By Anna Simon CLEMSON BUREAU
HONEA PATH — About 250 first shift employees were evacuated at the Torrington Company plant, one of the largest employers in the Honea Path area, Tuesday morning after a fire started in the air conditioning duct system about 9 a.m. No one was injured in the fire that was confined to the duct system, said Jimmy Smith, chief of the Honea Path Volunteer Fire Department. The fire was ignited by a cutting torch being used to do some duct work, Smith said. First responders in the plant’s fire brigade kept the fire isolated and protected the rest of the plant until firefighters arrived, Smith said. “You could see the smoke a mile-and-a-half away,” Smith said. “There was a lot of smoke due to cutting oils and greases used in the plant.” Honea Path Police Chief Steve Hanks, who also was at the scene said, “When we first arrived on the scene behind the fire trucks there was quite a bit of smoke coming from the plant. There were no flames coming through the roof. It was just smoke.” Firefighters from six fire departments from Anderson and Abbeville counties and the American Red Cross responded to the scene. The fire was brought under control in about 30 minutes, but firefighters went through the duct work looking for hot spots through the morning. When the alarm sounded, plant manager Butch Harris said he thought it was just a fire drill. The plant has quarterly fire drills. He and other employees evacuated as they had practiced during drills. Smith said the evacuation went smoothly and all employees were accounted for. The fire caused an estimated $10,000 in damage to the plant, Harris and Smith said. First shift employees sent home during the clean-up will be able to make up the time so they can receive full pay, Harris said. The plant on Brick Mill Road, between Honea Path and Belton, manufactures automotive components and employs 550 people, Harris said. Its biggest customers are Chrysler and Ford.

Small fire causes stir in Batavia 
By Veronica Gonzalez Daily Herald Staff Writer January 11, 2003 
When Lee Shafer walked up to the Holmstad’s nursing and rehabilitation center to visit his wife, he saw the place surrounded by fire trucks and thought it was a drill. What he saw was no drill. Roofers replacing an air-conditioning vent Friday atop the Michealsen Health Center were using a torch to install roofing around the vent when insulation caught fire, Batavia Fire Chief William Darin said. “We never saw a fire,” Darin said. “It was smoldering.” But at 11:47 a.m. six other fire departments, each of the Tri-Cities’ police departments and four ambulances were summoned to the retirement community at 831 Batavia Ave. in case the 89 residents had to be evacuated, Darin said. Police blocked off part of Route 31 in front of the Holmstad for roughly an hour. “We had a lot of excitement, but thank God not too tremendous a situation,” Darin said. Gray smoke filled the building’s first floor, prompting 44 elderly residents to crowd into the main lobby along with about 40 staff members. People who need rehabilitation, are dying, or can’t care for themselves live in the Michealsen building. “We didn’t want to take these people outside because of the weather,” Darin said. The smoke wafted in through the air vent the roofers had just installed but smoke never reached the second floor, said Susan Graunke, associate healthcare administrator for the Holmstad. “When I smelled the smoke, I realized something was going on,” said Shafer, 83, who lives in a different Holmstad building from his wife, Margaret. “I had hoped there was no damage to anybody in the building.” The roofers are subcontractors working for Hoffman Estates-based Leopardo Construction as the building is renovated. It’s part of the Holmstad community’s $13 million expansion. “It’s a common construction fire,” said Pete Gronset, project superintendent with Leopardo. Four roofers were working at the time and one of them started dousing the fire with extinguishers before firefighters arrived on the scene. It took firefighters minutes to cut the newly installed vent and use extinguishers to ensure the fire didn’t spread. Two firefighters received minor injuries. One injured a finger and the other an ankle. The Holmstad, where 600 people live, regularly holds fire drills. The Michealsen residents initially were kept in their rooms as part of the community’s safety procedures before firefighters decided to prepare them in case they needed to leave the building. “I decided to count this as an evacuation drill today,” Graunke joked. “This was a good evacuation drill, even though it wasn’t planned.” 

Six animals die in fire 
LANSDALE (AP) – About a half dozen animals died in a fire that gutted a Montgomery County veterinary hospital Friday. Fire officials suspected that a welder’s torch started the afternoon blaze at Gwynedd Veterinary Hospital, which had been undergoing renovations, authorities said. Hospital workers released animals from their cages when the fire started and saved at least 16. The exact number of animals that died wasn’t immediately known. Ed Davies, operations manager for the Montgomery County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said area veterinarians offered assistance in housing the surviving animals.

Bridge worker killed in accident 
By Sean Holstege STAFF WRITER 
Friday, January 10, 2003 – A man working on Bay Bridge seismic improvement projects has died in a Texas factory explosion. Metalworker Ernesto Moreno, 26, was killed Monday, reportedly as he worked on a steel casing for the bridge pilings. He is the third worker to die in the course of the retrofit. The accident in Ingleside, Texas, comes one week before pile driving is set to begin on part of the new Bay Bridge. One motorist was killed on the bridge during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake after driving into a gaping hole that appeared in the upper deck, when strong ground shaking collapsed a section of road and prompted the seismic retrofit. The Texas explosion reportedly occurred when sparks from Moreno’s grinding tool mixed with leaking gas fumes from a nearby welding torch. Federal workplace safety regulators have shut down manufacturing of the steel casings, Caltrans spokesman Greg Bayol said. He added that it remains unclear if the stoppage or the resulting safety probe will affect the construction timetable in Oakland. In the meantime, some pre-fabricated steel piles have been assembled in the construction staging area near Burma Road, which is known colloquially as “Camp Kiewit” for the prime contractor, Kiewit/FCI/Manson Joint Venture. The Omaha, Neb.-based Kiewit is building a $1 billion skyway, the first leg of a new $3 billion bridge to run parallel to and replace the quake damaged eastern span. Moreno worked for a Kiewit subsidiary. This week’s accident follows a string of problems involving the retrofit of the western span and painting subcontractor Robison-Prezioso Inc. In 2001 a construction panel collapsed onto the lower deck and killed passing motorist Anthony Menalosco of San Jose. Last year a scaffold buckled, pinning Oakland painter Darryl Clemons to the underside of the top deck. The freak accident killed him and hurt three co-workers. One of those colleagues, Nate Castilleja, filed suit in Alameda County Superior Court last week seeking damages from prime contractor California Engineering Contractors/Modern Continental Construction and from the New York firm that built the scaffold, Beeche Systems Corp.

Workers Injured In Explosion
An explosion at a stone quarry injured two workers Thursday morning, authorities said. The names of the injured were not immediately released, but their injuries were not considered life-threatening. Both were burned in the blast at Scotty’s Contracting and Stone Company, Bowling Green. Fire officials said a cutting torch came in contact with a barrel containing oil or gasoline, triggering the blast. There was no fire after the explosion. The incident occurred around 7:30 a.m. CDT. Barren River and Richardsville Fire Departments responded.

Explosion kills 1, injures 5; Welding gas causes fire at Kiewit
By Jaime Powell and Venessa Santos-Garza Caller-Times
INGLESIDE – Welder Tommy Lee heard an explosion and saw an 8-ton piece of metal go airborne. “It was like a kite. It flew straight up in the air and came crashing back down on a piece of equipment,” said Lee, 22, who was working on Kiewit Offshore Services Inc.’s San Francisco Bay bridge contract. “It went at least 50 feet up.” The blast, at 8:45 a.m. Monday, killed Ernesto Moreno, 26, and injured five others, law enforcement officials and workers said. One of the five injured was taken to Brooke Army Medical Center Burn Unit in San Antonio. The other four were taken to Christus Spohn Hospital Memorial in Corpus Christi from the Ingleside-area metal fabricator’s yard on the ship channel, on the north shore of Corpus Christi Bay. Monday afternoon, Christus Spohn spokeswoman Rita Patrick said that one of the injured was admitted. The other three remained in the emergency room Monday night, where Patrick said they were being evaluated. Law enforcement and state environmental officials at the scene described the accident as an explosion and flash fire caused by ignited welding gas. Moreno was on top of the section that blew into the sky. He was killed on impact, San Patricio County Sheriff Leroy Moody said. The injured men suffered burns and impact wounds from flying metal. Lee, still dressed in his work clothes, was waiting at the hospital for word on a family friend who suffered first-, second- and third-degree burns from the explosion. Din Thai, also a welder, said the injured were working on the San Francisco bridge project. Thai, 33, was working on a nearby section when the explosion occurred. His brother-in-law, Kiet Ly, 22, was injured when metal slivers sent flying by the pressure of the blast pelted him, Thai said. Thai said doctors have told him that Ly will have to spend at least a week in the hospital. “But he’s going to be OK,” he said. Property entrance guarded Lee said he and his coworkers are with Louisiana-based RBT Petroleum Associates. They had been working at the Kiewit yard for four months on 10-hour shifts, seven days week. Greg Bayol, a spokesman for the California Department of Transportation, which is overseeing the bridge project, said his office had heard about the explosion at Kiewit. The explosion occurred in a footing box, which serves as a guide for 300 piles that will sink to the bottom of the bay and support the bridge, he said. The footing box, which is supposed to be moved to California on a barge, is intended to allow workers to build a new span of the bridge connecting San Francisco and Oakland. Monday’s explosion should not delay the construction of the new east span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, Bayol said. “I think those are being fabricated ahead of when we need them,” Bayol said. Driving of pilings for the bridge is tentatively scheduled to begin Wednesday, he added. Kiewit officials weren’t answering calls Monday morning or afternoon. A spokeswoman for OSHA said an investigator for the federal agency was on the scene Monday. The investigator will be looking for violations of OSHA rules and the investigation could take as long as six months. Companies are required by law to report fatalities on the job or when three or more people have been hospitalized. OSHA spokeswoman Diana Petterson said in this case, fire department officials had notified the agency first, which is common.

Belle Fourche elevator explodes, catches fire 
By: The Associated Press 01/02/2003 
It happened in an older wooden part of the Dakota Mill and Grain elevator. The blast blew out the north side of the building. The damage was limited to one structure. Four people were inside at the time, but no injuries were reported, authorities said. Investigators said they do not yet know what caused the explosion. Four people in the building were welding at the time of the blast. Traffic on U.S. Highway 85 was rerouted. 

Fire Sparks Concerns
By John T. Anderson TIMES RECORD 
The city may more closely monitor renovation of historic buildings in light of Thursday’s fire that took down two historic structures, a city employee said. The loss of two buildings along what is known as Produce Row is the latest fire to claim historic buildings in Fort Smith. Matt Jennings of the city Planning Department said preliminary reports from firefighters indicated the fire started while construction workers were using a cutting torch to remove old pipes. Apparently, insulation near the pipes ignited, Jennings said. “They believe it started in the basement,” Jennings said. He said old structures warrant increased precautions. The Eads Brothers Furniture Co. Building at 414 Garrison Ave. and The Josiah Foster Building at 222 Garrison Ave. were destroyed by fires following a tornado that struck Fort Smith in 1996. The tornado sparked a move to expand the city’s historic grid, which today more or less encompasses an elongated rectangle-shaped area running from just east of the Arkansas River along Garrison and Rogers avenues. The west end of that rectangle ends near Cisterna Plaza. Jennings said the city may need to watch over construction workers, especially when older structures are involved. “It hasn’t come up at this point,” Jennings said. “I wouldn’t doubt that there will be some conversations about that.” Thursday’s fire comes as the city seeks to revamp the dilapidated downtown area. The changes really began with the establishment of the amphitheater at River Park, located on the banks of the Arkansas River. Shops and restaurants have followed and more are planned. The Produce Row area is significant to Fort Smith historically because produce from area farms was graded and shipped from the structures, which are located near a network of railroad tracks and the Arkansas River.

Man accidentally torches house
By Globe Staff and Wires, 12/29/2002
Two adults and two children were left homeless yesterday as fire tore through a two-family duplex at 59 Irving St. in Everett. Firefighters from Everett, Malden, Chelsea, and MassPort, were called in to help battle the two-alarm blaze, which started shortly before noon, fire officials said. The fire started on the second floor when the homeowner, using a plumbing torch to make repairs in the bathroom, accidentally ignited the wood frame behind the shower, said Everett Fire Captain Anthony O’Brien. There was only one family living in the duplex, O’Brien added, and the homeowner was in the process of converting it into a large single family home. No one was injured and the family is being assisted by the Red Cross.

CREWS FIGHT PIT FIRE NEAR ROOSEVELT 
Fire crews in Duchesne County spent nearly six hours Saturday battling an enormous blaze at a disposal pit north of Roosevelt. No injuries were reported in the fire, which broke out just after 2:30 p.m., apparently sparked by welders who were working in the area. Fire crews from Roosevelt, Altamont and Neola contained the flames by about 8 p.m., according to police dispatchers. Late Saturday, firefighters were still on the scene to make sure the fire did not reignite. 

Investigation under way in welder’s death 
By TOM MORAN Staff Writer 
Monday, December 23, 2002 – As an investigation into a fatal accident Saturday on the North Slope begins, the welder killed in the accident has been identified as Rodney Roost, 55, of Soldotna, according to The Associated Press. Roost was working with a pair of other workers on a 28-inch diameter section of pipe at about 1:45 p.m. Saturday when a plug blew out of the pipe and struck him, killing him. The other workers sustained minor injuries. The accident took place inside Module 301, Gathering Center No. 2, a climate-controlled processing area about 6 miles west of the Prudhoe Bay base camp. The main purpose of the center is to separate water and natural gas from oil. According to BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. spokesman Daren Beaudo, Roost was welding a flange onto the end of a 28-inch section of pipe when a plug that had sealed off the pipe section blew out and struck him, killing him. The plug was made of metal and sealed with a rubber gasket. According to Beaudo, the section of pipe had been sealed off and filled with nitrogen to prevent an explosion from the welding equipment. “This was a sealed, isolated section of pipe,” he said. Beaudo said there wasn’t an explosion, and that the source of the pressure that forced the plug off is unknown. “What we’re trying to determine is what source of force caused the plug to come loose and strike an individual,” he said. Beaudo didn’t have information as to where Roost was struck. The three men were working for the BP contractor Norcon, which is a subsidiary of the construction giant Veco Corp. Beaudo said the first investigators into the accident arrived Saturday night and that a preliminary investigation team is in place. He said a full investigation is planned, including assembling a team of people from BP, Veco, Norcon, and other organizations, including a lead investigator flying over from Aberdeen, Scotland. “It’ll be sort of a cross-section of people because this is considered, obviously, a major incident for BP,” he said. “This’ll be a long process,” Beaudo said of the investigation. “We go through a very formal, very meticulous process to find cause.” According to Beaudo, the last time a BP worker or contractor died on the North Slope was in 1998, when two people died in separate incidents. A BP oil field operator suffered serious burns in an August incident in which a well ruptured, releasing a torrent of natural gas into the small metal building covering the wellhead, uprooting flooring and gravel in the wellhouse and sparking an explosion and fire. The incident led to what BP called an unprecedented safety check in which the company shut down and tested about 150 oil wells. The tests did not reveal significant problems, according to a top BP official interviewed by The Associated Press.

UPDATE, Costly blaze on liner tied to welding work
NAGASAKI (Kyodo) A fire that severely damaged an almost completed ocean liner in early October was caused by welding work below a passenger cabin, Nagasaki Prefectural Police said Thursday. Police said they will investigate early next year to determine if the fire was the result of professional negligence. The 113,000-ton cruise liner was under construction at the Nagasaki shipyard of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. at the time of the Oct. 1 blaze. According to police, the fire broke out in Cabin 320 on the No. 5 deck. Welding work near the ceiling of the room below Cabin 320 caused a 5 mm steel plate between the floor of Cabin 320 and the room below to overheat and start the fire, police said. An experiment conducted by police last month confirmed that welding work caused the fire, they said. Police said they have interviewed about 900 workers on the ship and are now focusing on the welders. The liner, with 14 decks, is owned by British shipping firm P&O Princess Cruises PLC and is the largest passenger ship ever built in Japan. The liner was launched in May and at the time of the fire was docked at the Mitsubishi yard for interior work. The sprinkler system had not been installed. MHI is also building another ship at the same time for P&O Princess Cruises. On Nov. 11, MHI said it had agreed with the owner that the damaged ship, which was to be named Diamond Princess, will now be named Sapphire Princess and delivered in May 2004, instead of the previously scheduled June 2003. The other liner, which was to be named Sapphire Princess, will be renamed Diamond Princess and its delivery brought forward three months to February 2004, the company said.

UPDATE, Blaze Destroys W-P Storage Area
By GABE WELLS And SHELLEY GARRISON
Sparks from a worker cutting a chain in the storage area of Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp.’s Martins Ferry plant may be the cause of a fire that led the company to temporarily halt production and evacuate all 150 workers Tuesday afternoon, Martins Ferry Fire Chief Ed Duke said. Workers were back on the job Tuesday evening and production was expected to resume, company spokesman James Kosowski said. The fire apparently started about 45 minutes after a worker finished cutting chain in the storage area of building No. 20. Duke said debris on the ground near the welding site most likely caught fire. There were also a number of propane and oxygen tanks 30-45 feet away from the start site that fueled the blaze. The storage area was declared a total loss. No injuries were reported. Duke said firefighters planned to remain at the scene throughout the night to check for hot spots. He classified the fire as one of the “worst structure fires we’ve had for awhile.” Kosowski said the blaze began at about 1 p.m. Firefighters were successful in keeping the fire from spreading to the production portion of the plant. “The building was evacuated and the lines were shut down,” Kosowski said. “This facility has a number of different units. All of them were shut down. … (The fire) has not spread to the manufacturing facility.” Wheeling-Pitt employee Wayne West was near the storage area portion of the plant when the fire broke out. He said power in that section of the plant went out when the blaze began. He said he did not know there was a fire until he saw employees running through the facility. West said he was surprised how quickly the building went up in flames. Duke, a Wheeling-Pitt employee, said the fire area would be roped off and the remainder of building No. 20 could be utilized. Martins Ferry Mayor Lloyd “Bud” Shrodes was also at the scene of the fire. Shrodes said many of the city’s employees are Martins Ferry firemen. Shrodes said the city employees were relieved of their duties to fight the fire and stressed the importance of the Wheeling-Pitt plant to Martins Ferry. “We have to do everything we can to help them,” Shrodes said. “We can’t afford to lose this plant.” Martins Ferry, Bridgeport, Bellaire, Wheeling and Brookside fire and police departments and the Belmont County Emergency Management Agency responded to the scene. One of the main concerns was keeping the fire from spreading to the center of the mill, where paint thinner and other chemicals were stored. Fire crews called for utility companies to shut off gas and electric to slow the spread of the fire. The fire generated so much heavy smoke that communities across the Ohio River in West Virginia called their local fire departments to report smoke in their neighborhoods.

Fire burns column at hotel
By Dawn Bryant The Sun News
A wayward spark created a scare Monday at the nearly finished Radisson Plaza Hotel at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center. A column in the hotel’s lobby, which is set to greet its first guests in a few weeks, caught fire midmorning Monday as construction crews were welding stainless steel. A spark from the welding gun set the column on fire. Workers used a fire extinguisher to put out the flames before Myrtle Beach firefighters arrived. With an entourage of trucks with flashing lights, firefighters checked for structural damage. There was none, Battalion Chief Bob Derr said. “They had the situation under control,” he said. The charred column is easily fixable in a couple of day’s work and won’t cause structural problems or delays in finishing the building in time for the opening, said Tom Woods, vice president of Welbro Constructors, the firm building the hotel. “Nothing major,” he said. “It doesn’t threaten anything.” The $48 million, 404-room hotel, financed by the city of Myrtle Beach, is set to open next month. The firetrucks parked in front of the hotel sparked some concern Monday, including from Mayor Mark McBride, who was shopping nearby. He watched as firefighters surveyed the damage. 

Hamburg carwash fire
December 11, 2002 
A road in Hamburg was shut down this morning after a fire at the Stop and Gas Carwash on Saint Francis Drive. The Lakeshore assistant fire chief says an employee was trying to defrost pipes with a propane torch, when he ignited a bird’s nest. Fire trucks arrived on the scene while the block was closed off for more than an hour. No one was injured; damage is pegged at $10,000. The carwash will remain closed for the afternoon. 

26-year-old welder electrocuted
EUGENIA OKPARA, Owerri
THE Orji Mechanic Village of Owerri North Council area in Imo State was at the weekend thrown into confusion as a 26-year-old welder, Festus Ibe, was electrocuted in a grotesque circumstance. A witness account had it that the late welder was working on a Volkswagen Golf car when the ugly incident happened. A friend of the late Festus Ibe, fondly called “DD”, who pleaded anonymity, revealed that the late welder was welding something under the car “and unknown to all of us, a live wire fell on the metal board on which he was lying.” The witness told the DAILY TIMES that their attention was drawn to the spot when they realised that he was no longer working. Explaining, “one of the people around bent down and discovered that all was not well with Ibe and raised alarm which attracted other colleagues to the scene”. Continuing, he said that they had no premonition of the impending doom adding that “we all came to work as usual and prayed for a peaceful, fruitful outing but unfortunately we had a tragedy”. “Discovering that he was motionless under the car after calling him and there was no any response, we switched off his welding machine, brought him out and rushed him to a nearby private hospital where he was certified dead by a medical doctor”, he said. He said the staff of the hospital did all they could to resuscitate Ibe but did not succeed. The late Festus Ibe was a native of Umuofor Amaimo in Ikeduru Local Government Area of Imo State and had earned his living at the Orji Mechanic Village as a welder before the incident. It would be recalled that the same mechanic village lost one Kennett Nwachukwu in August through electrocution, thereby making the death of Festus Ibe the second artisan to have been electrocuted this year. The irony of the situation is that the two victims of electrocution were from Ikeduru Council Area as late Nwachukwu hailed from Ikembara. Meanwhile, the remains of the late Ibe have been deposited in the morgue of an unknown private hospital. 

UPDATE, Airport authority approves $2.19 million insurance deal for new hangar, expenses 
December 13, 2002 Independent/Barrett Stinson By Carol Bryant 
The Hall County Airport Authority approved a $2.19 million insurance settlement with Travelers insurance on Thursday resulting from the May 14 fire that destroyed the Great Lakes Aviation maintenance hangar. Travelers insured the hangar at the Central Nebraska Regional Airport. The airport will receive a total of $2,194,676, board attorney Ron Depue said. It has already received Travelers insurance payments totaling $733,718 and will receive the remainder, $1,460,958. Because of expenses the airport has had, such as demolition of the burned building and engineering fees related to plans for the new hangar, about $1.9 million will remain to cover construction costs of the new hangar, Airport Manager Bill Stovall said. “We’ve gone a long ways on building and design work,” Stovall said. Stovall said he appreciated the work of airport board Chairman Harold Rosenkotter, a retired State Farm Insurance agent, and Depue, who drove to Denver last week for negotiations. “A lot of work has gone into these negotiations,” Stovall said. The hangar that burned was constructed in 1942 for the Grand Island Army Air Base and had a wooden frame. Workers had been at the old hangar installing a new bi-fold door. Sparks from a cutting torch caused the fire. After the fire, Great Lakes relocated its maintenance center to a hangar just south of the one destroyed. One issue in the negotiations was determining replacement cost of the original hangar — the cost to rebuild a 1942 hangar plus upgrades that had been made since then. “No one can tell you replacement costs until you have had bids,” Depue said. The hangar that burned covered approximately 26,000 square feet. The new hangar will cover between 30,000 and 60,000 square feet and could be completed by this summer, Stovall said. The new hangar will be just east of where the old hangar was, freeing the location of the old hangar for economic development opportunities. Taking the cash settlement from the insurance company will help the Grand Island airport construct the type of hangar it wants, Rosenkotter said. In other business on Thursday, the airport board tabled action regarding a proposed contract with Airplanners, a consulting firm based in Avon, Colo., to develop an airline service program for the Grand Island airport.

Firefighters quickly put out blaze at downtown building
By TIM O’NEIL Post-Dispatch
A three-alarm fire sparked by a cutting torch Wednesday damaged a vacant building downtown that was being renovated for loft apartments. The fire was reported at 11:34 a.m. Wednesday in the upper floors of 1110 Washington Avenue, an eight-story brick building. Firefighters on Engine 12 saw smoke as they were driving downtown for repairs and headed for the building, said Fire Chief Sherman George. Four of nine workers inside the building escaped by climbing down a firetruck aerial ladder, and the rest got out on their own, George said. One man suffered a minor hand injury and declined treatment. The fire began on the fourth floor. Workers said a torch ignited paint or a chemical and spread quickly. “I could hear the noise, and I went to the window and saw flames,” said Nathaniel Fell, 48, a laborer. “The smoke got so bad, I couldn’t see how to get my way down. The firemen got me down their ladder.” Firefighters working from inside with hoses and from the outside with aerial ladder nozzles quickly put out the smoky fire. Bill Bruce, owner of the building, could not be reached Wednesday. Workers said they recently began stripping the interior to make way for lofts.

Blaze at hospital contained to roof area; welding blamed 
By Peggy Matthews 
Teresa Cothern was sitting at her son’s bedside when she heard the fire alarms go off at Blair E. Batson Hospital for Children shortly after 9 a.m. Tuesday. “They’ve been having false alarms, but we kept hearing the sirens, too. I didn’t know what was going on until I opened the curtains and saw all the fire trucks out there,” she said. “Nobody was panicky and the nurse said everyone would be safe.” A blaze broke out Tuesday on the roof above the fifth floor, apparently caused by a spark from a welding machine, officials said. The fifth floor had been vacated for construction of a $17 million sixth and seventh floor to house a pediatric surgery wing, which is under way. No injuries were reported, and no one was evacuated. A damage estimate will not be available for a couple of days, but the facility suffered only water damage, primarily to a south stairwell, said Mark Wall, a hospital administrator. “The patients were never in any danger,” Wall said. The Jackson Fire Department received the call at 9:10 a.m. and were on the scene three minutes later, said Fire Department investigator Norman Presson. “There was a considerable amount of smoke, but the fire was never actually inside the building itself,” he said. The fire was confined to the roof and was quickly extinguished, he said. The Fire Department’s response went off like clockwork in large part because it had just conducted three days of training at the hospital last week, District Chief Robert Bush said. “It is very labor intensive when you get into a high-rise situation,” Bush said. Fifteen units and seven support personnel responded to the scene, he said. The general contractor on the expansion project is W.G. Yates and Sons Construction. Shane Deville, senior project manager, said a subcontractor, Bracken Construction, was working on extending the structural steel when the accident happened. “It’s not uncommon. I’ve seen it happen on other jobs — it’s just the nature of construction,” he said of the fire. “Fortunately, it was contained pretty quickly.”

Toledo worker is crushed in Mich. quarry
OTTAWA LAKE, Mich. – A Stoneco, Inc., employee was crushed to death yesterday while working at the company’s Ottawa Lake quarry, Monroe County sheriff’s deputies said. Raymond Bermejo, 42, of Toledo was pronounced dead at Flower Hospital shortly after the accident occurred at 10:42 a.m., deputies said. Deputies said Mr. Bermejo, a truck driver and mechanic for the firm, was working at the bottom of the quarry on Sterns Road, using a cutting torch to remove bolts from a section of catwalk attached to a conveyor belt. After cutting loose a series of bolts, he was fatally injured when the catwalk section fell on him. Other workers freed him and he was taken to Flower Hospital.

Fire causes $1.7M in damage; Dayton Alloy blaze takes 4 hours to control 
By Candice Brooks Dayton Daily News 
DAYTON | Damage was substantial when Dayton Alloy Wheel, 1117 W. Stewart St., caught fire for the second time in 12 hours Monday. The fire, which was reported at 1:48 a.m., took six engines and more than four hours to get under control because of hazardous materials on the property, said Bob Alexander, public information officer for the Dayton Fire Department. “Zinc, copper, chrome and nickel were found, causing the water to turn greenish,” said Kara Allison, spokeswoman for the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. “The water was contained to the property’s site and the adjacent property. A little of the water got into a storm sewer that runs into the Great Miami (River), but no problems are expected because it will dilute.” Alexander said damage was estimated at $400,000 to the building and $1.3 million to its contents. He said the department is still seeking the fire’s cause, although it may have been caused by roofing work or an electrical problem. One firefighter, who suffered a minor eye injury, was treated at Miami Valley Hospital and released. An earlier fire at the business, which attaches chrome to rims of vehicle wheels, was reported Sunday. That fire caused about $5,000 in damage. Alexander said it was caused by roofing work, but Monday’s fire started in a different area of the building.

Arcadia Street fire was started by plumber’s torch
By Irene Muchemi
WESTWOOD – A fire that heavily damaged a home at 39 Arcadia St. Thursday night started with a plumber’s torch, officials said. The house has been under renovation for a month. Deputy Fire Chief Roderick Morrison said soldered pipes burned behind the bathroom walls, where workers were installing a new toilet. “They didn’t realize it,” said Morrison. “There’s no way to tell when it’s in hidden wide spaces; the 2-by-4s that hold the walls. It could have been burning for one or three hours.” Morrison said the fire didn’t become visible until it came through the roof. Officials have not yet determined a damage estimate. About 45 firefighters from Westwood, Walpole, Dedham, Norwood and Needham responded to battle the 7 p.m. fire in poor weather and visibility. The home’s owner, the Rev. Emmanuel Clapsis, said firefighters’ quick response and hard work kept the house from burning to the ground. Fire Chief William Scoble said firefighters knocked down the flames in about a half an hour, and were lucky to get such a large number of firefighters and so much equipment to the scene because it helped put the fire out faster. “They were heavy, real flames, and heavy smoke overlapping,” he said. “The fire started in the walls in the kitchen, and there was a lot of it in the partitions , kitchen and bathroom and attic – most of the interior really. It was hard to fight.” Clapsis said neither his wife nor their two children were home. The family has been renovating the two-story house for a month, and were looking forward to having it ready for Christmas, he said. “But now we don’t even have a house for Christmas.”

1 killed, 7 injured in a blast at Sewri 
By: UNI December 7,2002 
One person was killed and seven others were injured in a blast in the tank of a barge under repair at the Bombay Port Trust (BPT) High Bunder at Sewree this evening, police said. The incident took place around 1645 hrs, police said. Fire brigade and police officials have reached the spot and said preliminary investigations pointed to an accidental blast. While four of the injured have been rushed to the government-run J J Hospital at Byculla here, one of the workers is still trapped inside the tank, police said adding that efforts were on to rescue him. The statements of two of the workers who sustained minor injuries are being recorded, police said. “Initial reports say the blast appears to be a an accident but we are checking out other possibilities too” says Javed Ahmed, Joint Commission of Police – Law & Order. ”This morning the tank was repaired, painted and then a coat of ethanol was applied. While some welding was going on in the adjacent chamber, gas spread out from the chamber resulting in a fire and the blast”, a senior police officer told said at the accident site. The blast is close on the heels of the explosion at the mumbai central railway station here yesterday in which 25 people were injured.

Welder sparks tug boat fire
By JAIME HERNANDEZ Staff Writer
ORMOND BEACH — No one was injured in a fire that broke out Wednesday on a World War II-era tug boat being restored at a dock in the 2600 block of John Anderson Drive. The fire was reported to the Ormond Beach Fire Division at 1:12 p.m. and extinguished by 2 p.m. Jack Gordon McCarthy, the tug’s owner, said the 102-foot-long vessel has been moored at the dock on the Halifax River for four years to undergo restoration. Sparks from a welding torch ignited mattresses and life jackets in the forward hold. The Coast Guard and Ormond Beach fire officials are investigating. 

UPDATE, Workers saved own lives, saved Marion $250,000, Official damage total could take 2 weeks

By MONICA TORLINE
MARION — Marc Miller began working on a city leaf collection machine just after 1:30 p.m. Friday in the same spot he always used at the city garage. This time, the welder’s flame ignited gas fumes, and the whole building was ablaze within two minutes. The city’s old garage at 960 W. Center St. in downtown Marion was destroyed by a fire, sparked by the explosion of a diesel fuel tank that held at least 20 gallons of gasoline. The tank was leaking fumes, which were ignited by the flame of Miller’s torch. Had he known the tank had a leak, Miller said he would not have begun his work in the garage Friday. But he said there was no way for him to know because the fumes’ odor was undetectable. “I feel bad. Everybody tells me accidents happen,” Miller said. “That’s the way I gotta look at it.” Using two large fire extinguishers, Miller tried to put out the flames by himself. When he realized the fire was too unwieldy for him to handle alone, he tried calling for help. “Then I tried to call 9-1-1, but I couldn’t call out on the phone back there,” he said. Mark Sigler, the city’s transit administrator, was the only other employee in the building on the second day of the Thanksgiving weekend. Miller ran toward Sigler and alerted him to the flames just a few hundred feet away. “I called 9-1-1. While talking to the fire department, I looked down the north bay and saw fire in the west end, and the smoke rolled in on me,” he said. “We knew we were in trouble when we made the call.” After calling for help, the two men began to move city vehicles away from the encroaching flames, but time was not on their side. “We heard the first explosion somewhere during that time,” Sigler said. Sigler saved one bus from inside the garage, and both men saved numerous city vehicles parked on the south side of the building. Their quick thinking saved the city about $250,000, Safety/Service Director Dale Osborn said. A wrecker, a recycling truck and two buses were destroyed in the fire, a loss totaling about $250,000, Osborn said. Marion City firefighters spent three hours dousing the building with water on Friday and returned to the scene Saturday to extinguish smoldering materials. Miller and Sigler decided against running back into the building to save all the vehicles because the smoke was so thick. “Inside the bus, I couldn’t feel or smell any smoke around me, but I knew the visibility was bad,” Sigler said. “The smoke was pretty hairy, worse than you could imagine.” Sigler said he wished they could have saved more vehicles, but he also said it would have been unwise to put their lives in danger. “It was tempting to go back in, but once you’re out of a building, you don’t go back in,” he said. “Anyone who ever did that never made it out again.”

Workers Injured in Restaurant Fire
One man is in the hospital with second and third degree burns after a fire at a restaurant under construction on the city’s East Side. Warren Township fire investigators say four people were on the roof of Christie’s Restaurant when a blow torch came too close to a can of cleaner that tipped over. They say that caused a small explopsion. Paramedics took one man to the hospital with second and third degree burns on his face and stomach. One of the other workers was treated for minor burns. No one was inside the building at time of the fire.

Fire does $2 million damage in Marion
By Monica Torline Gannett News Service 
MARION — An explosion at a city garage Friday caused damage estimated at $2 million. The city’s old garage at 960 E. Center St., rocked with an explosion just after 1:30 p.m. Friday. Flames rose 30 feet and smoke rolled across a bright blue sky over downtown Marion. Firefighters and spectators backed away as combustibles inside set off multiple explosions. Wind swept through the building and stirred up flames. Fire punched holes through the roof, which eventually flaked away. City Superintendent Bill Hamby said a city worker was welding on a leaf machine when his flame ignited fumes from a gas tank containing 20 to 30 gallons of fuel. Hamby and other workers were moving materials into the city’s new garage when they saw the smoke, and immediately called 911. The worker made it out of the building and neither he nor anyone else was harmed. “If he was right next to it, he could have been — he’s lucky he wasn’t injured,” Marion Fire Chief Al Gruber said. City workers were called in to move their parked cars away from the burning garage. About a dozen vehicles were retrieved. A firefighter was pulling at the handles of the last remaining car, a silver Honda, when the wall behind him collapsed. The firefighter escaped from the tumbling cinder blocks, but the Honda’s back end was crushed. The city paid its insurance premiums two weeks ago, and coverage will be put to the test. Mayor Jack Kellogg estimates damages could total $2 million. Two buses, a recycling truck and a wrecker were lost; those vehicles were worth $250,000. “Everything’s destroyed,” Hamby said. “We might have been able to save this building if it weren’t for the wind.” One moment, smoke and heat blew southeast, and then it would whip to the northwest. Gruber said the wind kept his crews desperately trying to keep up with the fire. “It opened up in the west end, and the wind pushed it right through the building,” he said. The fire and smoke drew curious residents — some toting cameras. About 50 spectators on porches, train tracks and sidewalks watched firefighters work. “It doesn’t get much bigger than this in Marion,” Kellogg said. The city’s fire department, the only station to respond, extinguished most of the fire by 4:30 p.m., Gruber said. Sections of roof that caved in still were smoldering in the early evening Friday. The garage was 30 years old, and Kellogg said the city will need to replace it to house city vehicles at night. “We were going to use this building to store our sanitation trucks and buses,” Safety Service Director Dale Osborn said. Hamby said he will have to make do with the city’s new garage at 981 W. Center St. in the meantime. Kellogg and Hamby had an open house at the $1.7 million facility Sunday. 

Banquet hall lost in blaze
By: Gordon Wilczynski, Macomb Daily staff writer November 30, 2002 
Fortunately, no one was injured in the fire that started when a roofer accidentally ignited the roof at the Chateau Montreuil, but didn’t notice until a few seconds later. The complex is located on 23 Mile Road at Callens. The roofer, Todd Lucas, 42, of Port Huron, unsuccessfully tried to extinguish the blaze. He immediately ran downstairs to the adjoining NO SWET Sports Bar, where he notified a bartender and patrons of the fire, according to Chesterfield Township Police Detective Deron Myers. Lucas then remembered he left a 50 gallon propane tank on the roof and climbed back up to retrieve it before it exploded, Myers said. Chesterfield Township Acting Fire Chief Scott Messer said he could not immediately estimate the damage, but added that both the hall and the bar were destroyed. Messer said it appears as though the cause of the fire is accidental. Bill and Dee Montreuil of Shelby Township, who bought the hall in 1996 and opened it the following year, said they would spend much of Friday evening calling people who had a wedding or party scheduled. Dee said it is too early to say what she and her husband will do. “I don’t know what we are going to do now,” said Dee Montreuil, while being consoled by friends, including New Baltimore Councilman James Morisette. “Since our insurance was increased so high recently we only insured the place for 50 percent of the value. We’ll have to go inside later (when firefighters are through) and determine what is left.” Lucas, who works for Complete Roofing on Green Street in New Baltimore, said he was on the roof working on a flashing, a piece of metal used to seal joints, against a wall. He said he was “torching down” roofing material to seal the roof to the wall. “I went to get a drink of pop and saw a fire between the roofs,” said a shaken Lucas while trying to answer questions in the back of a police car. The roof on the hall is two feet higher than the roof on the bar. “I got the fire extinguisher and couldn’t get near it. I tried pouring water on the fire, but it didn’t do any good.” Myers said Lucas then climbed down into the bar to notify patrons about the fire. Kristi Montreuil, the owners’ daughter-in-law, said she was inside a hall office when notified. Firefighters spent three hours working on the blaze. Chesterfield Township received assistance fighting the blaze from Macomb Township and New Baltimore firefighters. Lenox Township firefighters responded to any calls at the Chesterfield fire hall in the event of an emergency. Lucas said he was stunned to see how fast this fire started. “He (Lucas) did obviously made a big mistake, but he did a great job of getting off the roof and getting everybody out of the bar,” Messer said. Myers said Lucas tried to remove the flashing from where the two roofs meet to help put out the fire. “He tried like hell and even ripped off the flashing and poured his own water on it,” Myers said. “He then remembered his propane tank was still up there and he got that off.” On at least three occasions, firefighters were ordered to back off from the building when portions of the roofs collapsed. Bill Montreuil said the roof above the hall and bar is made of steel with plywood and roofing on top of 2-by-4 wood. He said Lucas was repairing the roof because of some rust holes in the steel. “He (Lucas) was by himself taking care of the entire thing,” Montreuil said. “None of this would have happened if he had another worker with him.” Chesterfield police Sgt. Brad Kersten said the hall experienced an arson fire several years ago, prior to ownership by the Montreuils. He said police found a toaster with a cloth attached to a timing device. That fire caused considerable damage to the hall, but police never charged anyone. “We could never prove who did it,” Kersten said.

Welding sparks fire in Rockland boat yard
By: Daniel Dunkle November 27, 2002 
ROCKLAND – A fire started by welding equipment on a fishing boat at Rockland Marine Corporation Tuesday sent a plume of black smoke into the sky, but the fire was quickly extinguished and no one was injured, according to the boat yard’s owner. The fire started about 1 p.m. in the fish hold on the Isabelle Taylor owned by Shafmaster out of the Portsmouth, N.H., according to Perry Holmes who owns Rockland Marine Corporation on Mechanic Street. The vessel is more than 100 feet long. Sparks from a plasma cutter welding tool being used in the hold ignited the fire in some foam insulation in the hold. About 10 employees were working on the vessel at the time. “They told me to call 911,” said executive assistant Kristen Holmes. “There was fire and smoke, but no one was hurt.” Perry Holmes said Rockland Marine employees wielding carbon dioxide fire extinguishers managed to get the fire mostly out before Rockland firefighters arrived, but he added that it was important to call the fire department because there was no way to know if they were going to be able to put the fire out themselves. The fire never spread beyond the fish hold. Holmes added that the company keeps a good supply of fire extinguishers on hand. Kristen Holmes said employees used up 19 fire extinguishers on the blaze. Holmes said the insulation gives off a heavy smoke when it burns. Two Rockland fire trucks arrived at the scene along with an ambulance. Rockland police blocked off the street for a short time. The boat was in dry dock having work done when the fire started. Holmes said the damage to the boat was minimal. The burned insulation was scheduled to be replaced as part of the project anyway. The vessel did have some smoke and fire damage and Rockland Marine lost at least $12,000 worth of welding equipment in the fire, according to Kristen Holmes. She expects the loss to be covered by insurance. “We don’t care,” she said. “Those things can be replaced. We’re just glad no one was hurt.” Two employees were posted to watch the vessel overnight to make sure there were no more problems, she said. 

DeWitt Twp. business damaged by blaze
DeWITT TWP. – A spark from a welder’s torch is blamed for a 7 p.m. Tuesday fire that swept through the Encore Landscape Service building, 16936 Turner Road. Township Fire Chief Fred Koos estimated losses at $100,000 for the building and $90,000 for contents. “A spark ignited oil on the workshop floor and flames destroyed the building,” Koos said. Business owner Ron Burns said the building was insured with partial coverage for the contents. “We are very fortunate that nobody was hurt,” he said. 

Basement sprinklers save Rochester restaurant
Tuesday, 11/26/02
(KAAL) – Basement sprinklers protect a popular restaurant in downtown Rochester from a fire that firefighters are saying could’ve been devastating. The fire started in the basement of Henry Wellingtons at around 10:30 last night. A man was removing paint from the walls with a scraper and paint stripping chemicals, and then decided to use a propane torch instead. When he lit the torch he also ignited all the fumes as well, creating a flash fire. Minnesota adopted a statute mandating the installation of basement sprinklers in all businesses back in 1982. Ryan O’Donnell, KAAL News

Welder’s Torch Starts Fire at Primary Children’s Medical Center
Saturday, November 23, 2002 
More than 100 people were evacuated from the outpatient wing of Primary Children’s Medical Center in Salt Lake City Friday after sparks from an adjacent construction site started a fire, officials said. The sparks from a welder’s torch fell three stories and onto plywood coverings over air ducts servicing the wing, igniting the plywood, said hospital spokeswoman Bonnie Midget. The smoke was sucked into the air ducts and infiltrated the south wing of the hospital about 9:45 a.m., prompting the evacuations. Two surgeries were under way in the wing, but were in unaffected areas and proceeded, she said. The north end of the hospital, which houses inpatients and the intensive-care unit, was not affected since the hospital has fire walls and fire doors, which can be used to seal off the wing, she said. The fire was extinguished and the building was cleared by the fire marshal within an hour, but the hospital canceled its clinic for Friday and rescheduled non-essential surgeries and appointments so the smoke could dssipate. Those evacuated included visitors, outpatients, their families and hospital employees. The hospital and the construction site were undamaged, Midget said, adding the outpatient wing should be operating as normal by Monday. Workers are constructing a new clinic and new surgical suites on the hospital’s southeast side, she said.

Smoke summons fire engines to NARMC twice
By KEVAN MATHIS November 22, 2002
Two fires have occurred two days in a row at North Arkansas Regional Medical Center in Harrison with no reports of injuries, according to the Harrison Fire Chief John Neal. Several Harrison Fire Department engines were dispatched to the hospital at 620 North Willow Street at approximately 8:11 p.m. Tuesday when roofing materials caught fire on the roof above the emergency room and laboratory. The Harrison Fire Department responded with three fire engines and officially called the scene safe at 8:54 p.m. Officials said the fires started after employees with Harness Roofing Company installed a hot asphalt mix, accidentally ignited the roof, while using their open propane torch-down system. “The smoke from the roofing process was pulled down into the ventilation system and created some concern inside the facility,” according to Marsha Carter, spokesperson with the hospital. “Everyone responded as needed and there was no cause for concern or problems for the staff, patients or visitors.” Patients, visitors and non-essential personnel in the emergency room and laboratory area were evacuated outside as smoke entered the building from the roof and ceiling, Neal said. Hospital patients already assigned to emergency trauma rooms were not evacuated, however, since smoke apparently did not cause a safety problem in sealed individual rooms. Three more fire department engines were dispatched back to the hospital at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday and stayed on the scene until 4:15 p.m. when smoke again entered the ventilation system. “We vented the emergency room out with positive pressure fans and cleared out all the smoke,” said Neal. “All the hospital’s fire alarms and fire doors worked properly and the fire was quickly extinguished.”

Belle man burned in welding accident
By Jim Holland, Journal Staff Writer
BELLE FOURCHE – A longtime Butte County businessman is being treated at a Colorado hospital for burns suffered Monday in a welding accident. Carl Ogaard, 70, sustained third-degree burns to his chest and neck when hot metal from a grinder ignited a polyester shirt he was wearing, according to his stepson, LaVern Bills of Belle Fourche. Ogaard was welding a metal sign in his home hobby shop when the accident occurred about 5 p.m. Bills said. Ogaard was using a grinder to smooth out a weld, when a fragment of hot welding material ignited first his shirt and then the jacket Ogaard was wearing. Ogaard managed to extinguish his burning clothing, then called a neighbor for help. The neighbor in turn called a doctor, a longtime friend. The doctor took Ogaard to the Lookout Memorial Hospital emergency room in Spearfish. Ogaard was flown to the North Colorado Medical Center burn unit in Greeley, Colo., where he was initially listed in critical condition. He was upgraded to serious condition Tuesday. Bills said Ogaard also suffered injuries from toxic fumes from the burning polyester. “The lung situation is the probably the most life-threatening right now,” Bills said. Bills said doctors expect Ogaard to remain hospitalized for six to eight weeks. Skin grafts are to begin late this week, he said. Ogaard founded Carl’s Trailer Sales, a Belle Fourche business for more than 50 years. Bills asked well-wishers to refrain from sending flowers or other mementos to Ogaard. The gifts would not be allowed in the Greeley burn center’s intensive-care unit because of the risk of infection, he said. “We’re just asking that people keep Carl in their thoughts,” Bills said

Three welders burned in silo explosion
Associated Press
NEW LONDON, N.C. – Three men were severely burned in a freak explosion just as they were finishing a welding job in a silo Monday, officials said. Tony Eddins, 22, of Albemarle; Robert Poplin, 58, and Bob Pickler, 50, both of Mount Gilead, were in critical condition at the N.C. Jaycee Burn Center in Chapel Hill, a hospital spokeswoman said. The three had been welding a metal chute for about an hour and a half inside one of eight silos at Fiber Composite Corp., which makes wood composite for decks and rails. As they welded the last 6 inches of the chute into place, an explosion occurred about 9:30 a.m. “They triggered the dust and there was an explosion,” said Stanly County Fire Marshal Bill Rogers. The silo, though empty, had contained wood and polyethylene chips, said Fiber Composite President Douglas Mancosh. Dust particles mixed with oxygen in the right proportions can explode when sparked by static electricity or a welder’s flame, officials said.

Welding explosion burns 3
Men working in a silo at Fiber Composite Corp. when dust sparked
KYTJA WEIR
NEW LONDON – Within inches of finishing a welding job in a silo, three men were severely burned in a freak explosion Monday, officials said. Tony Eddins, 22, of Albemarle, Robert Poplin, 58, and Bob Pickler, 50, both of Mount Gilead were all listed in critical condition at the N.C. Jaycee Burn Center in Chapel Hill , a hospital spokeswoman said. The three had been welding a metal chute for about an hour and a half inside one of eight silos at Fiber Composite Corp., which makes wood composite for decks and rails. As they welded the last 6 inches of the chute into place, an instantaneous explosion occurred about 9:30 a.m., officials said. “They triggered the dust and there was an explosion, ” said Stanly County Fire Marshal Bill Rogers. The silo, though empty, had contained wood and polyethylene chips, said Fiber Composite President Douglas Mancosh. Dust particles mixed with oxygen in the right proportions can explode when sparked by static electricity or a welder’s flame, officials said. No one reported hearing any boom, officials said, and the three men staggered from the silo calling for help. Because the explosion was just a flash, the silo itself never caught fire. Only discolored marks appeared on the walls, officials said. But the room was still smoking when New London’s volunteer firefighters arrived, Rogers said. Ambulances took the men to a local hospital, where they were then flown by helicopters to Chapel Hill. Officials said burns may have covered up to 40 percent of at least one man’s body. Rogers said that the polyethylene in the dust might have made the burns worse. “It would be a hotter fire and would stick to you” more than wood dust alone, he said. Eddins and Poplin both worked for Pickler, who owns Carolina Welders, just south of the accident site on U.S. 52 in Albemarle. They had been hired to work on the expansion of the 140-person Fiber Composite plant. Rogers called the accident a freak occurrence. 

UPDATE, Liberty Steel Fabricating cited for worker’s death
(St. Joseph-AP, November 18, 2002, 7:40 a.m. ) Liberty Steel Fabricating is being cited and fined after an investigation into the death of a welder. 25-year old Dustin Gaul of Bridgman died August 15th while using a torch to preheat and weld an aluminum mold for the Berrien County company. The company was cited for two serious violations, failing to provide adequate training to Gaul and failing to vent the mold. State investigators say steam built up pressure in cavities in the mold, causing it to blow apart violently. Gaul was struck in the chest and abdomen by a steel backing plate. Other plant violations unrelated to Gaul’s death were discovered during the investigation. They include the company’s failure to use approved welding regulators and hoses — and failure to develop and train on a hazard communication program.  Liberty Steel President Andrew Gantenbein says the company is making all changes to be in compliance with regulations. The company is appealing the $4,500 in fines.

Workers start fire in old train car
By Anthony Plascencia, Correspondent November 14, 2002
A fire erupted Wednesday inside a vintage passenger car that was being restored by the Fillmore and Western Railway Line, officials said. Investigators said the 1922 Pullman Business Class car was parked in the company’s train yard at 351 Santa Clara Ave. and workers had recently started restoring it. “They were doing some welding and replacing some metal paneling on the walls,” said Chief Pat Askren, of the Fillmore Fire Department. Askren said horsehair, which was originally used to insulate the car, likely started smoldering inside the walls of the car’s kitchen area. A cleaning crew working on another car noticed smoke coming from the Pullman about 5:50 p.m., so they reported the smoke to company officials and tried to put out the flames. But it wasn’t until the Fillmore Fire Department responded that the fire was knocked down. “We had to cut into the walls before we could put it out completely,” said Askren. The car’s antique wood panels were not damaged because the fire burned mostly in the kitchen and was knocked down before it could spread. Railway owner Dave Wilkinson said the blaze caused about $200 in damage. The car is one of 74 owned by the railway. It was purchased about a year ago and will likely be used in movies after it is restored. The car will be worth between $100,000 and $120,000 when it is fully restored, Wilkinson said. 

UPDATE, Industrial Accident Victim Dies
By Ruth Anne Lipka, Times-Union Lifestyles Editor
FORT WAYNE – A Mentone man injured in a Nov. 2 explosion succumbed to his injuries Wednesday. Richard Grimm, 38, of Mentone, died at 9:47 a.m. at Parkview Hospital, Fort Wayne, where he was a patient since being airlifted from Valley Foods (formerly Kralis Brothers Foods), Tinkey Road, Mentone, after the accident. Grimm suffered burns to the right side of his face and inhaled some of the flame, officials said. He also suffered three broken ribs, a punctured lung and a concussion. He was comatose and in critical condition after the accident, but was upgraded Monday to fair condition before his condition worsened. Grimm, an employee of Craig Welding of Mentone, was working at Valley Foods to replace roof support rafters in the chicken processing plant when the cutting torch he was using apparently ignited a previously undetected natural gas leak. The natural gas was pocketed in a false ceiling in the area where Grimm was working to cut out the final rafter. When the explosion occurred, Grimm was blown off the ladder from which he was working and onto a cement floor. A flash fire occurred along with the explosion, but it burned itself out almost immediately.

Sparks from welder likely cause of blast; man hurt
By: JAMES VAN OORT, The Daily Republic November 15, 2002
A Mitchell man was injured Thursday after sparks from a welder fell into a bulk waste oil tank, causing an explosion. Larry Hohn, of Mitchell, was welding at Larry’s Texaco on South Burr Street when the explosion happened, according to Detective Chris Konrad of the Mitchell Police Department. “It looks like the gentleman was welding on a vehicle in his shop, and we think some sparks got down into a bulk waste oil tank down in the floor,” Konrad said. The explosion occurred at about 4:30 p.m. Thursday. Hohn was not burned, but a piece of metal hit him in the leg, injuring his leg and ankle. Captain Mark Eliason of the Mitchell Fire Division said Hohn was taken to Avera Queen of Peace Hospital. He was then transferred by Mitchell Ambulance to Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls for his leg injury. Hohn’s condition was not available, but his injury was not life-threatening, Eliason said. No others were injured in the explosion. Konrad said that other than Hohn’s injury, damage seemed to be limited to the garage. “It looked mostly like the garage door and then the grates above the bulk tanks,” Konrad said. “A few lights and windows were broken from the (explosion), and then the grates and the garage door.” No vehicles in the building appeared to be damaged, Konrad said. The incident is still under investigation, but Konrad said he is considering it an accident.

Roof fire caused by spark from torch, Mishap should not delay bar opening
KIRSTEN MURPHY
A fire Monday evening on the roof of the Store House Bar and Grill, the building meant to replace the Tulugaq Bar, caused $2,000 in structural damage. Fire Chief Cory Chegwyn said Nunavut Construction Corporation workers were on the roof of the one-storey building when the blaze started around 7 p.m. “It looks like a spark or an ember from a (propane) torch ignited some building materials,” Chegwyn said. A small area of insulation, particle board and plywood needed to be replaced. The repairs were expected to be complete by the end of the week. Before firefighters arrived, a construction worker attempted to quench the flames with a hand-held extinguisher. But high winds kept the fire going until a water truck arrived. It took 16 firefighters and 200 gallons of water to extinguish the fire. No one was injured. However, residents of the adjacent high rise apartment building spilled into the parking lot at the sound of the building’s fire alarm. Smoke filtered into the intake system and triggered the alarm. “There was some smoke in the other buildings but it dissipated fairly quickly,” Chegwyn said. The mishap is not expected to delay the opening of the new bar, scheduled for next summer.

Walsh Avenue fire controlled
By Danielle M. Pothier / Staff Writer
Firefighters quickly extinguished a two-alarm fire in a Walsh Avenue basement last Wednesday afternoon. “They did a great job stopping it and confining it to the basement,” said Fire Capt. Ed Regan. The Fire Department was called to 22 Walsh Ave. at 12:23 p.m. for a report of a basement fire. “We were coming back from a call on Montvale Avenue and we were on Main Street when we got the call,” said Fire Lt. Frank Gould. “We were right near the corner of Franklin Street and we headed right down.” When Engine 1 arrived, firefighters found the homeowner, Elio Commito, and a plumber from Heritage Plumbing and Heating in the front yard. “When I pulled up, there was a lot of smoke,” said Police Officer Bob Kennedy, who was one of the first to arrive on the scene. “The Fire Department acted quickly. They were flying around.” Gould, along with firefighters Bill McNulty and Frank Brown, began an interior attack of the fire. Both Ladder 1 and Engine 5 arrived, and firefighters Justin Petrillo, Sean Fitzgerald and John Galla laid down a second line to the Engine 1 crew. Firefighter Paul McIntyre assisted with both the interior attack and laying down the line. “The ladder crew started ventilation,” added Regan, who was the incident commander. Because of all the smoke, Regan said the firemen were uncertain what they were facing inside the house. “We weren’t sure what we had, but we knew it was in the basement,” said Regan. Regan said he was concerned the fire may have entered the walls, but the blaze was contained to a small portion of the basement and was quickly extinguished by firefighters. A second alarm was struck at 12:32 p.m., which sent a Melrose Fire Department engine company to Walsh Avenue and a Reading engine company to the fire station on Central Street. Several firefighters responded to the department’s callback request, including Matt Mayo, Matt Grafton, Guy Cammaratta and Scott Greenleaf who responded to the scene to help overhaul the fire. According to Commito, he hired Heritage Plumbing and Heating to replace a water valve for the washing machine in the basement. “The plumber had been working, replacing a water valve in the basement and the plumber’s torch caught on fire,” said Gould. Gould said the plumber attempted to put the fire out himself, but realized he couldn’t. He rushed upstairs and told Commito to get out of the house. The pair called 911 before leaving and waited for the Fire Department in the front yard. “No one was hurt, which is good,” said Gould. “There was a finished side to the basement, with finished walls and ceiling, and there was some damage to the finished paneling and ceiling, as well as the electrical wires in the wall in that area.” Gould said the fire was caused by the plumber’s torch being used on the water valve, which was right up against the wall paneling. “The paneling caught fire and so did the insulation behind the paneling,” said the lieutenant. Fire officials were uncertain how much monetary damage was down to the basement.