This morning at 10:00, residents within a three block radius of the corner of Mopan and Mahogany Streets in the Lake Independence area of Belize City heard a massive “boom”. Many reported feeling their house shake and almost everyone we spoke to thought it was a hand grenade tossed somewhere very close to them. But they were wrong; the thundering boom was the sound a 50 pound butane cylinder exploding at Brown’s Butane Service. That alone is frightening, but the tragedy is that an employee of Brown’s who was handling the tank when it ruptured was killed by the force of the explosion. 7News was on the scene and here’s more.

Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
Twenty five year old Elton Herrera, an employee of Brown’s Butane Gas Service was carrying the fifty pound cylinder when it exploded – and exploded into the air like a rocket – hurling Herrera to his death. His mangled remains were strewn across the street. Neighbours say was he launched like a projectile, across the street and into the air as high as 20 feet. Some of his internal organs were found a block away near the canal.

He was literally blown to bits as hundreds of droplets of the victim’s blood were splattered one of the company’s delivery trucks and two other vehicles parked by Brown’s Butane Gas Service on Mopan Street.

Michael Middleton, Operations Officer – Fire Department
“He was filling a tank, I understand they placed it in the back of the pickup truck for delivery and they found out that it was leaking and he went into remove the leaking tank and that is when the bottom of the tank gave way, threw him some 75 feet away and the tank carried on two blocks.”

That’s two blocks, plus a canal– which adds up to about 500 feet between where it was launched from and where it finally landed and destroyed this wooden veranda of this one storey house at the corner of Sarstoon and St. Jude Street. Luckily no one was home at the time. When the cylinder was examined by fire officials they noticed that the bottom of the tank was completely gone.

Michael Middleton,
“From what we observed, first of all we noticed that the tank was basically rusty and when we found it we did an inspection of the tank and what we found is that the tank seems to have been re-welded; a new bottom seems to have been placed on it and what happened is probably the original bottom had a hole and the owner had it repaired by removing the old bottom and had another bottom placed on it and that was basically the weak spot and that gave way.”

Walter Brown, Spokesperson - Brown’s Butane Service
“I don’t know if it was welded. I didn’t see it, I wasn’t here. However if it was welded I am sure they would not have filled it. So if somebody says it is welded, I don’t know. I would have to look. I haven’t been able to do that yet. But we would not fill a welded tank and we don’t weld any around here.”

According to Walter Brown he was not present when it happened, but the company did inspect the cylinder before it was filled and at that point everything appeared normal.

Walter Brown,
“This is the line that goes from the tank that we are going to fill but it also has a pressure, it can pressure the tank so we put it into the valve, put the valve into the tank, and we put it on with just pressure, no gas comes out. If it works, it doesn’t leak or anything like that, and then we take the water and do the bottom and check the bottom, the sides, and the valves and if everything is okay then we fill it. From my investigation just now and talking to people around here, they tested the tank before they filled it.”

Jacqueline Godwin,
“So what happened?”

Walter Brown,
“Like I said I wasn’t here, I don’t know but if I don’t know it is not right for me to comment on that. However it is a tragic accident. The best we can do is convey our condolences to the family. If we could change it, we would.”

Four hours earlier Elton Herrera was only three blocks away at home having breakfast. According to Yvonne Dyer and Gregorio Herrera they heard the explosion but never thought that their son’s life had just ended.

Yvonne Dyer, Mother
“Well he usually gets to work for 8 o’clock and so he left before 8.”

Jacqueline Godwin,
“How long has he been working with Brown’s Butane?”

Yvonne Dyer,
“Probably about two to three months. He usually just delivers so I don’t know. He is not a person that talks a lot so I don’t know. He complains now and again but he is not somebody who talks a lot.”

Jacqueline Godwin,
“So when you heard the explosion this morning, this is the last thing you would have expected to hear about your son?”

Yvonne Dyer,
“Yes mam because I don’t know he worked with the gas part, I just know he delivers so I didn’t know. I just heard the explosion and I came out and I said maybe it was a blow-out but then a little while after that I smelt gas and so one of his friends came and told me it is Elton, he is dead.”

Gregorio Herrera, Father
“I was sitting right over here and he was sitting over here eating breakfast and like I said, I wake up with a funny feeling this morning. I just watched my son in his face and it is like I said, he said to me, ‘Daddy why you the watch me.’ I said I don’t know son. I told him I was running a little joke but then after breakfast he said he was going and I said alright. I didn’t know that was the last time I would see my son alive.

I heard the explosion but what I didn’t know, a few moments after I smelt gas and then one of his friends run to come tell me that Elton dead. I didn’t say nothing, I sit down same place and I never even got up.”

But is Brown’s Butane Gas Service responsible for the death of Elton Herrera?

Walter Brown,
“I don’t think we are responsible. First thing, we don’t own the tanks. The tank is the private property of whoever it is that we are filling.”

Michael Middleton,
“Jackie this should have never occurred. In the past we had many dialogue with all the butane companies and safety as you know is one of the fire service’s main issue but from our point of view, these butane companies, they seem to be very negligent. They do not worry about safety, all they worry about is profit and I am not knocking where the incident happened, I am not knocking Mr. Brown. I am putting it out there that butane companies, all butane companies operating in Belize need to be more safety conscious.”

Walter Brown,
“We did what we were supposed to do, we tested it before we filled it. It would appear that after they filled it, they found that it could not take the pressure and they were taking it out as understand, they were taking it off the truck when the accident happened.”

Jacqueline Godwin,
“But that couldn’t have been determined before during inspection?”

Walter Brown,
“No it wouldn’t come out. When you fill the cylinder then whatever other weakness it had would come out then. But if you just pressurize it under normal circumstances, if it is not weak you would not see anything.”

Michael Middleton,
“The company said they tested the cylinder, they said it passed their test, I will argue with that. But from what our inspection shows, the tank had a fault. Maybe the company overlooked but from what we can see the tank did have a fault and should not have been filled.”

Walter Brown,
“We do not own any tanks. So this is the point we have to make; we don’t own any tanks. We don’t recycle tanks. All the tanks belong to somebody and now we have to go pick it up, test it, fill it, and take it back.”

But what is not disputable is that a tank that more than likely was welded exploded and claimed the life of Elton Herrera. It is a tragedy that the National Fire Service has been sounding its alarm for quite sometime.

Michael Middleton,
“Be safe inspect your tanks. If tanks come in rusty, if they come in with leaks, do not fill these tanks.”

Elton Herrera’s family believe the company could have prevented their son’s death.

Yvonne Dyer,
“It is an accident as far as I see it. It is an accident but probably they are responsible in some kind of way because you are supposed to know what somebody does or what they can’t do. But as I am concerned it is an accident and I guess that is how it is supposed to be. But I think they are kind of responsible some way. They are responsible because if you are not trained to do gas, you are not supposed to put somebody to do it. I think you should be trained to go around gas.”

Jacqueline Godwin,
“So you’re saying your son never had the experience to fill the tanks?”

Yvonne Dyer,
“I don’t know, I don’t really know. He never said anything about filling tanks before so I don’t know.”

Gregorio Herrera,
“If that’s the way, if those cylinders are not properly secured before then they shouldn’t fill it and a man like whom he is in the gas industry for years, he should know or have somebody out there with experience to check these cylinders and see if they are sealed properly and things like that right.”

Elton Herrera had just started working at Brown’s Butane Gas Service two to three months ago. Jacqueline Godwin reporting for 7News.

It is important to note that there was no spark or flame which ignited the tank. Once the bottom of the tank ruptured – the gas escaped rapidly into the air, expanded and caused the rocket-like explosion. So what about that Butane depot in your neighbourhood or those in residential areas all across the country? Well, today’s tragedy has certainly caught the attention of the authorities to what they consider to be a major public safety issue.

Tomorrow morning at 9:00, a meeting will be held at City Hall with the Fire Department, NEMO, and the BDF. Presently, the Fire Department and the Department of the Environment approves and inspects butane depots.

Late this evening Brown’s Butane Gas Company issued a press release in which it expresses its condolences to the Herrera family for the loss of their son. According to the company, in more than twenty years of operation, they have had a clean safety record and this is the first major incident.

And according to Brown’s Butane Gas Company, each empty tank which is brought in for filling is checked for leakage and the integrity of its structure. It is first pressurized and scrutinized carefully before being filled and the company states that it maintains a strict policy of refusing to fill tanks which are corroded or damaged in anyway.

Meanwhile the National Fire Service continues the investigation and is scheduled to meet with the police on Tuesday to determine whether or not any charges will be levied against brown’s butane gas company.