BANGOR, Maine — Four Bangor Public Works Department employees were hospitalized, one with serious injuries, when a small propane tank exploded at a downtown job site late Tuesday morning.
Public works director Dana Wardwell said a group of six workers was paving sidewalks on Park Street and Somerset Street when the explosion happened.
“We’re very thankful that no one suffered any life-threatening injuries,” he said. “It could have been a lot worse.”
Bangor Assistant Rick Cheverie said the accident happened when a small gas tank fell into a paving machine and ruptured. The blast caused some minor damage to public works equipment, but the damage did not extend further.
Firefighters went to the scene as a precaution, but there were no flames.
“It’s under investigation, so I really can’t say more than that,” Cheverie said.
Three of the four public works employees were treated for minor burns at a local hospital and then released. The fourth was likely to spend the night at Eastern Maine Medical Center, Wardwell said.
No names were released.
“Because these were job-related injuries, we’ve been in contact with [Occupational Safety and Health Administration] officials, who are still gathering facts,” Wardwell said.
