UTAH COUNTY, Utah, Nov. 19, 2022 (Gephardt Daily) — A 49-year-old Taylorsville man was critically injured in a shipping container explosion Saturday in southwest Utah County.
Fire crews from several south Utah County communities responded about 10 a.m. to reports of an explosion on private property along Hancock Ranch Road, according to a news release from the Utah County Sheriff’s Office.
The man had entered a shipping container that contained “several different kinds of flammable fuels,” the release states.
“He walked to the far end of the container, lit a portable propane heater, then walked back toward the entrance. As he got to the entrance, the vapors inside the container ignited and exploded,” according to the sheriff’s office.
The man sustained a critical injury to his right hand, which was nearly severed, as well as second-degree burns to 35% of his body and less severe burns “over most of the rest of his body,” the release states.
The man was treated by paramedics at the scene and transported by medical helicopter to University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City, according to the sheriff’s office. His injuries are considered life-threatening.
Fire crews from Santaquin, Payson, Genola and Goshen responded to the explosion, the release states.
