2nd Worker Dies From Injuries in Texas Hospital Explosion
July 2, 2018
A second worker has died from an explosion at a Central Texas hospital that left more than a dozen injured.
Police reported the death of 36-year-old Filiberto Morales of Round Rock, Texas, who died June 28 after being injured in an explosion on June 26 at Coryell Memorial Hospital in Gatesville. Police say Morales was working at the construction site.
Authorities have reported that more than a dozen construction workers were hurt from the explosion and that most had burn and blast injuries. Police also identified the first person killed by the explosion as 44-year-old Michael Bruggman of Rogers, south of Temple.
Witnesses said an electric generator inside an uncompleted hospital expansion exploded, spreading shrapnel. Yet, Dave Byrom, the hospital’s chief executive, said the blast possibly started with a gas line. ================================
We are deeply saddened by the event that occurred Tuesday, June 26th, at our job site at Coryell Memorial Hospital in Gatesville, Texas. Today we are mourning the loss of a valued LPI family member in addition to offering our prayers and support to others who were injured, wishing them a speedy recovery. Right now, our priority is to provide any manner of support possible to valuable members of LPI, along with their families. As an active member in the Central Texas community, we take seriously any event that impacts the lives of Central Texans, and we are dedicated to helping our Lochridge-Priest family move forward.
WACO, Texas (KWTX)
A candlelight vigil is scheduled this weekend for Michael Bruggman, 43, of Rogers, the Lochridge-Priest worker killed in the Gatesville hospital explosion, which left 15 other workers injured, some critically.
The vigil begins at 8 p.m. Saturday at The Lakes at Central Pointe at 4001 Central Pointe Parkway in Temple.
A source close to the investigation said Bruggman was installing an air conditioning unit on top of the building at the time of the explosion Tuesday afternoon.
Bruggman was a Temple native who graduated in 1992 from Academy High School and went on to attend Sam Houston State University.
A memorial service for Bruggman begins at 11 a.m. Monday at the Dossman Funeral Home Chapel at 2525 North Main St. in Belton.
Visitation begins at 10 a.m. Monday at the funeral home.
Five other Lochridge-Priest employees were injured in the explosion, the company said in a press release Thursday.
They and Bruggman were among 15 Lochridge-Priest workers on site at the time of the explosion Tuesday afternoon.
The other nine employees weren't hurt.
Adolfson & Peterson Construction, the general contractor for the project, issued a statement Wednesday in which it said Bruggman and the 15 injured workers were all employees of Lochridge-Priest and were working near the central utility plant building when the explosion occurred.
It wasn’t clear Thursday afternoon by whom the other injured workers are employed.
The company says it’s focused on making sure that its workers and their families are provided with all possible support and is working to determine whether “protocols were followed during this incident.”
“First and foremost, our priority is to provide any manner of support possible to our valued LPI family, along with their loved-ones. As an active member in the Central Texas community, we take seriously any event that impacts the lives of Central Texans, and we are dedicated to helping our Lochridge-Priest family to move forward. Please pray for us,” said Skip Burch, president of Lochridge-Priest, Inc.
================================
Lochridge-Priest, Inc is a family owned and operated company that has served the Central Texas area for over 50 years. We are the largest provider of residential, commercial and industrial heating and air-conditioning services, as well as, plumbing services in Central Texas. We have recently expanded our electrical and building automation service areas. We have our own engineering team and a sheet metal shop, Advanced Sheet Metal. With over 400 employees, we are dedicated to serving your home, business, and industrial comfort needs. We work as a team to deliver best in class service to our customers.
About
HVAC • Plumbing • Electrical • Building Automation • Refrigeration
categories
Heating, Ventilating & Air Conditioning Service · Plumbing Service · Electrician
Officials release name of construction worker who died in Gatesville explosion
By Emily Hilley-Sierzchula | Herald staff writer
June 27, 2018
UPDATE 2:30 p.m.: Four of the injured construction workers who initially were sent to Baylor Scott & White Medical Center in Temple were transferred to Dell Seton Medical Center at the University of Texas, according to a Seton official on Tuesday.
UDPATE 1:15 p.m.: The general contractor for the expansion at Coryell Memorial Hospital confirmed the construction firm on site during Tuesday's explosion as Lochridge-Priest, of Temple.
A representative from Richardson-based Adolfson & Peterson Construction said a crew from Lochridge-Priest was working on site at the time of the incident near the central utility plant where the explosion occurred.
All 15 injured workers and the one man killed during the incident were employed by Lochridge-Priest. There were no reported injuries to Adolfson & Peterson staff.
A representative from Lochridge-Priest declined to comment.
“Our team is deeply saddened by this tragedy and we are working closely with our partners at Coryell Memorial and Lochridge-Priest to provide support during this time," said Corbett Nichter, president of the Gulf States Region of Adolfson & Peterson. "Our sincere condolences, thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of those injured and lost.”
___________________________________________________________
Update 11:52 a.m.: Officials released the name of the construction worker who died as Michael Bruggman, 44, of Rogers.
Media outlets are reporting one of the 15 construction workers, Aaron Haveron, was in critical condition Wednesday in Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas. He's the pastor of a United Pentecostal Church in Marlin.
Parkland reported one other man injured in the blast was also admitted to the Dallas hospital.
Coryell Memorial Hospital released a phone number, 254-404-2500, for families to reach the hospital.
Ambulance services in Gatesville are running but the emergency room and all other wings of the hospital are still closed. Those in need of emergency services should call 911, and an ambulance can take them to hospitals in Waco or Temple, officials said.
At a press conference at 11:45 a.m., Gatesville Police Chief Nathan Gohlke said "We are focusing the investigation on the debris field in and around the explosion site. We also will be assessing damages to the hospital and nursing home facilities there at that location with full intent of releasing those unaffected portions back to the hospital's control within the very near future."
Structural engineers are at the site today assessing the damage, Gohlke said.
"The outpouring of support for this incident has been incredible, and we certainly want to thank everyone for bringing us food, water toiletries and other needed supplies," Gohlke said.
Gohlke is asking the community to be patient, and wants to bring the hospital and services back on line as soon as possible.
Coryell Memorial Hospital CEO David Byrom said: "I'm surrounded by heroes where I work. It's very impressive."
Byrom described what happened after the blast:
"Probably within five minutes of the event, my staff had that building nearly completely empty. And for the victims of that, our physicians and nurses were already responding, and I had staff that was helping bring folks out of the rubble. They had triage centers set up on the ground. We were working that. "
The triage likely minimized some of the injuries, said, adding, then patients "were transported very rapidly."
Bob Harrell, the Coryell County emergency coordinator, said the hospital's
acute care hospital, emergency room, nursing facility and assisted living
are not open today.
The hospital's home health system and rural health clinic in Goldthwaite are open, he said.
"So our focus is getting those services back on line," he said. "Probably starting with our emergency room, which also means that our lab, radiology departments need to come back online, getting our clinics back open, then certainly focused on bringing our residents home."
Law enforcement from around Central Texas have been busy securing the scene of the explosion as investigators were searching through the rubble Wednesday morning at Coryell Memorial Hospital in Gatesville.
“They’re gathering evidence to find out what happened, and they’re not ready to start cleaning up yet,” said Sgt. David Roberts, Department of Public Safety public information officer, on Wednesday morning.
Roberts said the Gatesville Police Department is taking the lead at the scene and that DPS and other state and federal agencies are in a supporting role.
An explosion ripped through a Coryell Memorial Hospital construction site Tuesday afternoon, killing one and injuring 15 — all construction workers, according to hospital officials. No patients or staff at the hospital were injured. On Tuesday, officials said 12 were injured, but they revised that number to 15 today.
The blast, which was suspected to have been caused by a gas leak, occurred about 2:45 p.m. knocked out power to about 900 homes and businesses in the city and led to the evacuation of the hospital and three on-campus care facilities.
Power was fully restored to the town Tuesday night, with the exception of the hospital, officials said this morning.
Roberts said the investigation will take some time.
“It’s nowhere near the scale of West (fertilizer plant explosion in 2013) but it is still a tragic event so they’ll take their time investigating to ensure they are thorough and come to a proper conclusion,” Roberts said. “The best you can do is support those involved, which is what the Gatesville community is doing.”
Roberts said he saw how the community came together.
“Yesterday I saw a huge outpouring of help by the community,” he said. “People showed up in droves to assist in evacuations and in caretaking roles.”
All patients who were in the hospital were transferred to Goodall-Witcher Hospital in Clifton, according to the Coryell Memorial Hospital Facebook page.
All long-term care and assistant living residents from the Gatesville hospital "have now been placed in the following for temporary care: Hillside Medical Lodge; Lutheran Sunset Ministries, Clifton; and Westview Manor, McGregor,” the post said. “Many of our staff went to join our residents overnight to assist in their care, and provide a source of comfort and consistency.”
“Emergency Medical Services and Coryell Home Health have continued to operate, and DaVita Dialysis will resume treating patients in the morning. The rest of the campus will be closed including; the hospital, Coryell Medical Clinic, and the emergency room (ER),” according to the Facebook page. The dialysis center across the street from the hospital in Gatesville is open, officials said Wednesday.
The Texas State Fire Marshal’s Office is involved in the investigation but could not provide details until after the investigation is over, a spokesman said on Wednesday morning.
“They are there to conduct an origin and cause investigation,” said Jerry Hagins, spokesman with Texas Department of Insurance. The State Fire Marshal’s Office is part of the department.
===============================
Lochridge-Priest to review policies, support employees affected by Gatesville Explosion. Toolate for Michael Bruggman, who was killed in the massive explosion.
"As an active member in the Central Texas community, we take seriously any event that impacts the lives of Central Texans, and we are dedicated to helping our Lochridge-Priest family to move forward," Lochrich-Preist President Skip Burch said. Unless of course they ask for money.
Author: Brandon Gray
Published: 3:34 PM CDT June 28, 2018
Updated: 4:05 PM CDT June 28, 2018
Lochridge-Priest said they are supporting the families and loved ones of their employees affected by Tuesday’s fatal explosion at Coryell Memorial Hospital in Gatesville, the company announced Thursday.
Lochridge-Preist President Skip Burch said their priority is to provide any manner of support possible to their valued LPI family along with their loved ones.
“As an active member in the Central Texas community, we take seriously any event that impacts the lives of Central Texans, and we are dedicated to helping our Lochridge-Priest family to move forward,” Burch said.
The company went on to say in a press release that moving forward, their decisions will focus on ensuring the irreplaceable members of the company, along with their families, are provided with all possible support. The will continue to be active and engaged in the Central Texas community by providing and organizing resources for those affected by the blast, the company stated.
Lochridge-Priest state the nature of their work at times involves inherent risks, which is why safety their top priority.
Fifteen workers were at the scene of the explosion, six being Lochrich-Priest employees. One of the LPI Employees died and the five others were injured. The other workers injured were not LPI employees, a spokesperson said.
The company is currently reviewing all policies to ensure protocols were followed during this incident and are hopeful the investigation findings will aid them in preventing any future accidents.