The crew of ladder 16 narrowly escape major injury and a large fire that could have burned the rig up. After checking off the EMS bag, it was zipped back up and placed back in the compartment. The MRL bag was placed on top.
The FF then removed the suction bag and started to check it off when fire emitted from the EMS bag. The FF grabbed the bag and tossed in on the bay floor where other FF's tried to extinguish it. The relief valve was sounding and the impinging flame from the relief valve caused the cylinder to fail.
Notice the breech in the cylinder wall at the shoulder of the cylinder.
No one was injured in the fire or cylinder failure, but imagine the burn to the face level of a FF when the cylinder failed if it was still in the compartment.
A preliminary investigation suggest that the ignition sequence could have been a pen light (found melted to the underside of the cylinder) and under the pen light was a adjustable wrench. The O2 somehow leaked and saturated the bag. The EMS bag was replaced back in the compartment and MRL placed on top. The weight of the MRL compressed the cylinder on the penlight against the wrench.
This information is still preliminary and was put together with the help of BC Mike Gurley, BC Vance Cooper and John Lyons.
We will attempt to find the cause of the oxygen leak through a couple of channels formally. As more information comes forward, we will certainly let you know.
It is amazing that these circumstances (Dominos) can come together and cause such a terrible event---but no one was hurt this time (except for noise exposure), and damage was confined to equipment. Please check your EMS gear and make sure pen lights are not floating in the bottom of the bag and that your wrench is plastic or non-sparking and that you have the regulator gasket/o-ring in place and you turn the O2 completely off.
Pressurized gases including oxygen and air are dangerous and you need to handle them carefully.
Thank you for your attention, if you know of any similar circumstances involving O2.
Virginia Beach Fire Department
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