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| Eric Byers, 29, of Satillo, Huntingdon County, died at about 7 p.m. the day of the incident at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown. |
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| Eric Byers, 29, of Satillo, Huntingdon County, died at about 7 p.m. the day of the incident at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown. |
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| A second employee, Rick Barnes, has died three weeks after an explosion at Letterkenny Army Depot in Pennsylvania |
LETTERKENNY, PA -
A second employee has died three weeks after an explosion at Letterkenny Army Depot.
The employee died Thursday at the hospital where he had been treated since the July 19 incident, the army depot said in a news release Thursday afternoon.
The army depot said it was withholding the worker's name out of respect for the family. However, a GoFundMe site established for the man's family just after the explosion identified him as Rick Barnes.
"We are completely devastated to have to share with everyone that this morning daddy lost his fight," Jessica Edwards posted. "He was the strongest man we ever knew and fought as hard as he could. He was our rock, a husband, father and the best pappy. Daddy had so many amazing friends. We thank everyone for everything that they have done for our family for the last 3 weeks. We will never be able share how grateful we are. We ask right now for some privacy for our family as this is so much to take in."
He suffered burns on about half his body and was being treated at Bayview John Hopkins in Baltimore, according to the GoFundMe story.
He was one of five workers injured after an explosion and fire in the paint shop in Building 350. He and two others were airlifted to regional hospitals. Eric Byers, 29, of Satillo, Huntingdon County, died at about 7 p.m. the day of the incident at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown. The Lehigh County coroner said he was handling chemicals when there was a flash fire, and he died of the injuries he sustained.
Two others were treated for smoke inhalation and released. One employee remains hospitalized.
"The Letterkenny Army Depot family deeply mourns the loss of another invaluable team member as a result of the industrial accident that took place on July 19," said Col. Stephen Ledbetter, Letterkenny Army Depot’s commander.
Letterkenny’s Safety and Engineering offices, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration and the depot’s emergency and fire services are working together to investigate the cause of the incident, according to depot officials. Letterkenny held a Safety Stand Down Day on July 24 when the depot shut down operations in order for the depot leadership to speak directly with employees about safety. Ledbetter said he intends to hold Safety Stand Down days on a recurring basis.
The GoFundMe site for the Barnes family is https://uk.gofundme.com/help-support-rick-and-his-family.
On Thursday July 19 our dad was injured in an explosion at Letterkenny. He sustained burns to about 50% of his body and is currently in stable condition at Bayview John Hopkins. He’s facing atleast 3 months in the hospital along with a long road to recovery. Everyone that knows our dad will know how strong of an individual he is and he’s also very proud. But with so many wanting to help that we thought this is only way to easily set things up. Theres a lot of expenses of travel back and forth. But we’re making sure that he hasn’t had to spend one day alone.
We we have been so touched by the outpouring of support that everyone has given. Daddy certainly has a lot of very good friends. We have def said that he’s one unforgettable person and that has def held true! It’s been almost overwhelming how many people know him.
Many thank yous in advance to anyone that helps out and please if anything just keep the prayers coming.
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Second Worker Injured In Pennsylvania Army Depot Explosion Dies
An apparent explosion and fire at the Letterkenny Army Depot in Pennsylvania left two people dead.
By Feroze Dhanoa, Patch National Staff |
August 9, 2018
CHAMBERSBURG, PA — A second employee injured in an explosion at the Letterkenny Army Depot in Pennsylvania last month has died, depot officials said in a news release Thursday.
"The Letterkenny Army Depot family deeply mourns the loss of another invaluable team member as a result of the industrial accident that took place on July 19," Depot Commander Col. Stephen Ledbetter said.
The apparent explosion and fire injured five other employees. One of the employees injured in the incident died the day after the explosion and fire and a third employee remains hospitalized. Officials said at the time of the incident that three employees had to be airlifted to hospitals after suffering burns.
The worker who died Thursday at the hospital has not been identified.
The incident is being investigated by Letterkenny's safety and engineering offices, OSHA and the depot's fire and emergency services.
The depot, located 160 miles (257 kilometers) west of Philadelphia, or about 55 miles (88 kilometers) southwest of Harrisburg, employs about 3,600 people. The depot's website says work there focuses on air defense tactical missile ground support equipment, mobile electric power generation equipment, Patriot missile recertification and route guidance vehicles.
Reporting from The Associated Press was used in this report.