Hyperbaric Chamber Explosion

[fdog]

I was gifted to be able to attend last years' Benefit for the Catalina Chamber, courtesy of the gracious sponsorship of Tobin George. As a former hyperbaric Chamber operator, this hits especially home.

It is with great sadness that I report an explosion of a Hyperbaric Chamber in Ocala, FL, which killed the inside chamber tender and the patient (a horse).

Linky to first report


Linky to local news

From theHorse.com


Woman, Horse Dead after Hyperbaric Chamber Explosion


by: Pat
Raia
February 10 2012, Article # 19591

While Florida fire authorities probe the cause of a hyperbaric oxygen chamber
explosion that killed one horse and one woman and injured another woman, an
equine veterinarian who founded a hyberbaric-oxygen-therapy-focused veterinary
society said practitioners strive to minimize risk associated with the
technology.

According to published reports, on Feb. 10, a hyperbaric oxygen chamber
exploded at the Kentucky Equine Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation Center
(KESMARC) in Ocala, Fla., when a horse inside the chamber began kicking. The
horse and a woman were killed in the incident. Another woman sustained
injuries, the reports said. Marion County, Fla., fire rescue officials are
investigating the cause of the incident. A representative from KESMARC Florida
was unavailable for comment.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) involves treating a patient
with 100% oxygen under pressure; veterinarians have explained the process
increases oxygen levels in blood plasma and promotes higher delivery to all
body tissues, including the injured area, to facilitate healing. In horses HBOT
is used to treat a range of conditions and acute injuries, including deep
wounds, joint injuries, and infections. Horses treated with HBOT are placed in
chambers that are approximately 10 to 12 feet in diameter.

Dennis Geiser, DVM, Dipl. AVBP, associate professor in the Large Animal
Clinical Sciences department at the University of Tennessee’s College of
Veterinary Medicine and founder of the Veterinary Hyperbaric Medical Society,
declined to comment specifically about the KESMARC Florida incident. But he
said that HBOT chambers used in the United States are manufactured according to
specific safety standards, and that practitioners take precautions to ensure
horses’ safety during treatment.

The cause of the explosion is unknown and currently under
investigation.

Geiser said that while the oxygen itself is unlikely to ignite, oxygen
under pressure could be ignited in the presence of a spark.

“So we don’t put shod horses in the chamber,” Geiser said of his approach
to safety. “We take the shoes off if we can, or we put boots on the horse or
otherwise cover its feet.”

In addition, he said rubber material about halfway up the interior walls of
some chambers to further minimize spark risk, he said. Geiser declined to
speculate on whether the KESMARC Florida chamber contained the rubber wall
material.

Geiser said that the majority of hyperbaric oxygen chambers are
manufactured by Veterinary Hyperbaric Oxygen, a Lexington, Ky.-based company.
No one from the firm was available to comment on the KESMARC incident.

Sadly, all the best, James

 

[Zodiacdiverdave]

It's been a while since I have heard of a HBC explosion. Sad thing.
ZDD

 

[Garrobo]

I thought that race horses wore aluminum shoes.

 

[DandyDon]

It was a horrible accident, and there are conflicting reports and confusion over reports. Some excerpts...

From Manufacturer urges facilities to stop using hyperbaric chambers following explosion

She said they allowed horses to wear shoes in the chamber, because she had always been told it was safe because of the rubber floors and padding on the walls.

From Woman identified in fatal Marion County hyperbaric chamber explosion | News - Home

Rhonda Stroup, a Marion sheriff detective, said the horse kicked off a protective shield inside of the oxygen-filled chamber and as the steel shoe as struck the side of chamber, it caused a spark and ignited instantly.

From Woman, horse killed, 1 injured in Marion Co. hyperbaric... | www.wftv.com

Equestrian experts said it's highly unusual to put horses inside the chambers without tranquilizing them first, but it's not required.

WFTV was told that this could have been prevented if the horse had aluminum shoes because those are not magnetic and wouldn't have caused that spark.

 

[pjhansman]

There's more to it then a spark from a horseshoe. Oxygen is not a fuel - it doesn't burn. It had to come into contact with a fuel to cause an explosion.

 

[Hatul]

I can understand the horse, as I almost had a claustrophobic panic attack on entering a small chamber on a dive ship. I closed my eyes and meditated through it and when the ventilation started fortunately the feeling went away.

Perhaps they should have sedated the horse first.

 

[DennisS]

There's more to it then a spark from a horseshoe. Oxygen is not a fuel - it doesn't burn. It had to come into contact with a fuel to cause an explosion.

How much methane is in a horse fart?

A little bit of Acetylene gas and Oxygen makes a boom that sound likes a cannon, I'll speculate that methane and O2 would be an explosive mixture.

 

[DandyDon]

Perhaps they should have sedated the horse first.

I think it was mentioned that they usually do, but this horse had been in before and seemed to behave well. I'd want it sedated.

There's more to it then a spark from a horseshoe. Oxygen is not a fuel - it doesn't burn. It had to come into contact with a fuel to cause an explosion.

How much methane is in a horse fart?

Enough to ignite a horse tail...?

 

[rmh84]

I had to chime in on this one, my other expencive hobby is as a horseback rider (the only thing in the world I may like even more then diving).

Yes, there are lightweight shoes made of composite, aluminum, and even rubber like the bottom of a tennis shoe, and they do tend to use them on racehorses. However, Ocala is the winter sport horse mecca of the universe, so you're dealing with mostly high end jumping or other olympic dicipline horses at this time of year in that part of the world. Most horses still wear steel shoes because they can be re-worn many times, are less expencive, and don't require particular expertise to apply.

Yes, the horse should have been sedated. Most performance horses are used to tight spaces, they go on long trailer rides regularly, so it would not be unheard of to take a horse that has always traveled calmly and trust him. Sedation always has it's risks, so it's always better to go without if at all possible. That said, **** happens with horses, they're more predictable then humans, but who knows... the handler could have moved abruptly causing the horse to become upset. We'll likely never 100% know.

I thought that race horses wore aluminum shoes.

 

[DandyDon]

I've been wondering how they handle ear clearing with a horse?