How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 114 severe incidents involving flammable gases over the last decade. Thermal burns are the most common injury type, frequently resulting in extensive hospitalizations and long-term recovery needs for you.
These injuries often impact your head and extremities, causing severe trauma that extends beyond the initial point of contact. The high frequency of flash fires means that you often face life-altering damage to your face, hands, and upper extremities.
Burned by flammable gas? Check what benefits you may be owed.
Check My BenefitsHow these injuries happen
Flash fires are the primary cause of injury, accounting for 57% of all reported incidents involving flammable gases. These events occur when leaking vapors encounter an ignition source, such as a torch, pilot light, or electrical spark. You are often caught in sudden, intense heat when gas accumulates in confined spaces or escapes during the transfer of fuel between cylinders.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Flash fire | 65 |
| 2 | Inhalation of harmful substance | 30 |
| 3 | Explosion of nonpressurized vapors, gases, or liquids | 10 |
| 4 | Contact with cold objects or substances | 3 |
| 5 | Fire— unspecified | 2 |
| 6 | Explosion— unspecified | 2 |
| 7 | Exposure to harmful substance through exposed tissue | 1 |
| 8 | Struck by propelled object or substance | 1 |
Where injuries happen most
Mining operations account for 20% of all reported flammable gas injuries, reflecting the high-risk environment where heavy machinery and fuel storage intersect. Manufacturing and construction follow closely, as these industries rely heavily on gas-powered tools and heating equipment that require strict adherence to safety protocols to prevent leaks and accidental ignition.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns in these incidents involve the failure to properly manage residual fumes during equipment repair or the accidental release of gas during fuel transfers. You are often injured while performing routine maintenance on tanks or using torches near pressurized lines. If any of these scenarios sound like what happened to you, an attorney can help you review the specifics of your incident to determine if employer negligence played a role.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | IL | Retail Trade | "An employee was using a torch to burn off liquid petroleum gas from old 100-pound cylinders so they could be recycled. When he went to move a tank, some gas spilled onto the ground, then ignited in a flash that engulfed him. He was burned on the face, hands, and back and was hospitalized." | |
| 2025 | TX | Mining | "On July 17, 2925, an employee was working on a computer inside a vehicle when they began experiencing symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning, resulting in hospitalization." | |
| 2025 | IL | Retail Trade | "An employee was filling a motor fuel cylinder from a bobtail. When he opened the handle on the fill nozzle it popped off the filler valve and pushed him back into a rack where he struck his head on a cylinder cage. He sustained a laceration to the back left side of his head. While working to wrestle the hose to the ground, he sustained burns from liquid propane on the right side of his chest and right arm, and sustained minor burns on the left side." | |
| 2025 | CO | Arts & Entertainment | "An employee was kneeling, lighting the pilot for a gas range, when gas that had leaked from a quick coupler at the back of the range ignited. The employee suffered serious burns to both arms and her neck." | |
| 2025 | GA | Other Services | "Employees were performing repairs on a propane tank at the front of a school. A torch was being used to melt a cable when residual fumes from the propane tank ignited. One employee sustained burns to their upper and lower body and was hospitalized. A second employee sustained minor burns." | |
| 2025 | FL | Retail Trade | "An employee was filling propane cylinders at a customer location when a flash fire occurred, resulting in burns to the face that required hospitalization." | |
| 2025 | ND | Mining | "An employee was servicing oilfield equipment. As he was swapping sides on a dual-choke manifold to check for wear, a flash fire occurred, resulting in burns to his face and the top of his right hand." | |
| 2025 | CT | Manufacturing | "During the fabrication of a metal railing, an employee was heating a metal bar with an acetylene torch to prepare the bar for bending. After heating the bar, the acetylene torch was extinguished and placed in the open end of a 4 rectangular tube. Acetylene from the torch leaked into the tube. Several minutes later, the employee used a hand grinder that produced sparks which ignited the acetylene. The employee sustained facial burns." | |
| 2025 | FL | Health Care | "Two employees were doing emergency medical service work. Their ambulance was leaking exhaust, and both employees developed carbon monoxide poisoning. Both were hospitalized." | |
| 2025 | PA | Transportation & Warehousing | "An employee was sitting in the cab of his truck at the end of the day. He had just finished driving for 8-10 hours. Exhaust from the truck had been leaking into the cab. The employee began having difficulty breathing and was sweating profusely. The employee was hospitalized for an asthma attack triggered by carbon monoxide." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.