Abstract: At approximately 11:29 p.m. on August 8, 2002, Employee #1 was working in a cotton warehouse. A coworker was situated adjacent to a cotton compress conveyor that was surrounded by a 12-in. to 18-in. deep layer of loose cotton dust. A flexible electrical cable ran between the conveyor motor and an electrical controller box mounted on a pole approximately 4 ft from the conveyor. The electrical cord was on the floor under the cotton dust. Employee #1's coworker apparently kicked the cable under the dust and saw a spark fly. The spark ignited the loose cotton dust. The fire spread to cotton bales in the warehouse and reached the ceiling of the structure. Employee #1 escaped the building, but then ran back in to save his truck. Employee #1 sustained second-degree and third-degree burns and was transported to the hospital, where he later died.