Abstract: Employees #1 and #2 were dismantling a L-800 loader, beginning with the right front tire. They first removed the 16 bolts that held the split rim together, and then used an impact wrench to remove 41 of the 48 bolts holding the rim to the hub. The final seven bolts could not be removed with the wrench, so the employees began cutting them off with a gas torch. They had removed five of the seven bolts when the tire exploded, shearing the remaining bolts and striking both workers. Employee #1 was struck in the head and killed instantly. Employee #2 was hospitalized for five days with head injuries and fractured ribs. The employees had failed to deflate the split rim tire before trying to remove it.