A recent lab explosion at the University of Hawaii leading to the loss of an arm of a researcher was probably due to static electricity, says a private investigator.
This bit of news was released on Friday by the University of California Center for Laboratory Safety.
At first, it was thought that the explosion had been caused by a faulty pressure gauge. However, the examiners later explained that it was due to static electricity released into the tank that led to the explosion, according to Michael Bruno, vice chancellor for research at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
"By all accounts and from everything that we know so far, there were many, many efforts to make this process as safe as possible, and in fact, the exact same experiment essentially had been conducted 10 or perhaps 11 times prior to this accident occurring," Bruno said.
Bruno had clarified to the fire department investigators that it was making her shocked sometimes when she touched the tank. Though she reported it to the professor who employed her in order to conduct research into bioplastics and biofuels, he assured her that she should not worry about it.
She said that a day before the explosion occurred, she could hear a cracking sound. She was told to work with various kinds of equipment, said Bruno, when he pointed out to "what looks like a tragic decision."
"In hindsight, that was not the right interpretation of what had happened," Bruno said.
The accident scene could be examined only 13 days later.Bruno said that it had been important to clean up the blood and damage to the lab and ensure that it was "structurally sound", Bruno said.
As they could not interview the researcher, the officials had to rely on the department officials.
"She went through a tragic and traumatic experience that I don't think any of us can even imagine," Bruno said. "She was conscious throughout, and she elected not to have contact while she was in the hospital. Soon after she left the hospital, she went back to her native United Kingdom, and so we have not to this day been able to speak to the researcher."
One digital pressure gauge was the source of the electrical current that led to the detonation. Some of the lab equipment was not "properly grounded", they said.
The lab is one part of the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute on the school's flagship Manoa campus. Each lab here that is part of the use of flammable or pressured gases got shut down since the accident happened. A number of suggestions in the report are being enacted. Following the accident, a safety committee has been employed to look into the experiments that involve the hazardous materials.
Hopefully, next week, many labs can re-open again.
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