Inspection Detail

Inspection: 302535463 - Green Mountain Explosives

Inspection Information - Office: Concord Area Office

Investigation Summary

Employee #1 had been picking up the empty boxes and bags that had previously contained cast boosters, non-electric blasting caps, dynamite, and blasting agent, and proceeded to the burn area with the boxes and bags in the back of a pickup truck. There, he started a fire using some household trash and a ripped up box that had previously contained the non-electric caps. Once this fire was blazing, he threw in several boxes that he believed he had picked up near the dynamite magazine, followed by a group of three boxes that may have been from the booster area. These three were in a configuration such that a top and a bottom had been slipped inside one another. A second box assembled the same way was dropped sideways into the open box and a third was dropped upside down over the second one. The bin covers were open. He then stepped back to a point slightly to the driver's side of the pickup truck. Within several minutes an explosion occurred. Employee #1 was knocked about 100 ft away and lost consciousness. He suffered a ruptured ear drum and a small laceration on his neck. After the explosion, parts of the tank were found up to 250 ft away. A 2 ft by 3 ft section of plate was found 250 ft away, and a 3 ft square section was found approximately 150 ft away. There were several smaller pieces found within 100 ft of the tank. A consensus was reached between the fire marshal's office, the New Hampshire State Police, OSHA, and ATF that a 2 lb cast booster had probably been left in one of the boxes and detonated in the fire.

Keywords: UNCONSCIOUSNESS, EXPLOSIVES, WORK RULES, CLEANING, EAR, RUPTURE, EXPLOSION, STRUCK BY, FLYING OBJECT, DETONATOR LEAD