Joe Nichols, one of the workers injured in a tanker truck explosion Monday at a Glenville asphalt plant, died late Wednesday afternoon, according to a lawyer for The Gorman Group.
Nichols, who lived in Amsterdam, had worked for Mohawk Asphalt Emulsions for 24 years, attorney Frank O’Connor said.
Three workers were taken to hospitals after the explosion, which was caused by the heating of a valve on a tanker truck that was being loaded with a mix of kerosene and asphalt.
Nichols, 56, and one other worker were taken to Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, Westchester County, O’Connor said. The other worker taken to Westchester is in critical but stable condition, O’Connor said, and his name is being withheld at the request of his family.
The third worker taken to a hospital, identified as Brian Jones, was not severely injured and is expected to make a full recovery, O’Connor said.
[Blast investigation continues at Glenville asphalt plant]
Emergency crews responded shortly after 1 p.m. Monday to Mohawk Asphalt Emulsions, where a tanker truck being loaded with a mix of kerosene and asphalt caught fire and exploded. The incident was caused by a valve on the truck being heated, which ignited vapors and led to the explosion, officials said. The company is located off of Freemans Bridge Road, along the Mohawk River.
Inspectors from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration were dispatched to the plant Monday, an OSHA spokesman said. The organization will determine whether there were any violations in worker safety leading up to the explosion.
Further details weren’t available Thursday, as the investigation is ongoing, said Robert Garvey, OSHA’s Albany director. Investigations can take up to six months, he said.
Mohawk Asphalt Emulsions has not been cited in the past by OSHA, although the Gorman Group has. In 2010, the company was fined $1,500 for work zone safety violations during a paving project in Vermont, according to an OSHA database.
The Glenville site has been making highway construction materials since 1975, according to its website.
Reach Gazette reporter Brett Samuels at 395-3113, [email protected] or @Brett_Samuels27 on Twitter.
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