Abstract: An operator for a lead-acid battery manufacturer was working in the lead-refining area. He was using a gas torch to heat up casting pipes from a kettle in preparation for casting blocks. He was standing between that kettle and an adjacent one near the mold burner for a pig-casting machine. As he was heating the pipes, a flashback from the mold burner startled him, and he lost control of the gas torch. The torch burned the left side of his neck, shoulder, and ear. The employee's cotton shirt ignited, burning the employee more. He was hospitalized for about 2 weeks with second- and third-degree burns on his neck, ear, and left shoulder. The employee had been working as an operator for his employer for about 7 years.