Inspection Detail

Inspection: 125837179 - River Riders, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Sacramento District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 5:00 p.m. on August 20, 1998, Employee #1, of River Rider, Inc., a white water rafting company, was driving a van along a highway to an overnight camp for rafters. He was carrying supplies for that night's dinner, including two propane tanks that were stored with an ice chest in the back of the van. The tanks were new and had been filled for the first time. One of them began to leak; within 20 or 30 seconds, the tank was leaking fully and the van was filled with a white cloud of propane gas. Employee #1 had pulled the van to the edge of the highway and was starting to get out when the gas ignited, blowing him out with a large fireball. Immediately after the accident, a motorist transported Employee #1 to Auburn Faith Hospital in Auburn, CA, from which he was flown by Life Flight to UC-Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, CA.

Keywords: BURN, LEAK, VAPOR, FLAMMABLE LIQUID, FLAMMABLE VAPORS, FIRE, EXPLOSION, PROPANE, TANK