Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 13, 1994 TAG: 9401130111
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RON BROWN and TODD JACKSON STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
Capt. Marvin Huddleston of the Roanoke Fire Department said hot gas and insulation escaped from the oven and struck the men in the face and hands.
The workers, whose names were unavailable Wednesday, were taken to Roanoke Memorial Hospital. An emergency room worker at the hospital said Wednesday night that both were treated and released.
Starco's president, John M. Davis, said the explosion happened just as company officials were getting ready to start a safety meeting around 3:30 p.m.
"We were going to award jackets to everyone for the safe hours we've had here," he said.
Davis said a built-in safety device on the oven kept the explosion from being any more serious.
Firefighters were called to the company after someone reported a fire with injuries, Huddleston said.
When firefighters arrived, they found one of the men lying in the doorway of a shop building. The other was lying at the front of the building.
The men's faces were covered with soot from the explosion, Huddleston said. The men were cleaning grease from a piece of machinery at the time of the accident.
The exact cause of the explosion had not been determined. Davis said representatives of the oven's manufacturer told him the blast could have been caused by a gas leak or by a mistake in operation.
Starco, which remanufactures engine parts for the heavy-trucking industry, employs 35 workers, Davis said.
by CNB