Explosion at W.Va. Recycling Plant Injures Employee

Officials say an explosion at a recycling facility in West Virginia has burned an employee.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports that state fire marshal Shawn Alderman says the worker was treated for burns at a local hospital after the incident at Cashin Recyclables in Nitro. Alderman says it happened shortly after 10:30 a.m. Wednesday when the worker used a hand-held rotary saw to scrap an oxygen cylinder.

Alderman says a “burst fire” occurred when the worker cut into the tank. Alderman says certain precautions are needed ahead of time when a rotary saw is used to cut oxygen cylinders.

U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration spokeswoman Leni Uddyback-Fortson says investigators were looking into the incident.

According to the Gazette-Mail, Cashin Recyclables managers were in a meeting and unavailable for comment.