BUTTE, Mont. (AP) - An explosion that killed a man and injured another at a Butte truck repair shop started when sparks from a welding tool ignited fumes from an oil storage tank, Butte-Silver Bow firefighters said Tuesday.
The men were trying to repair a pinhole leak in the tank at Silver Bow Truck and Auto Center when the explosion happened, Fire Marshal Zach Osborne told The Montana Standard.
David Carpenter, 31, of Butte, died at the scene, said Coroner Lori Durkin. The other man suffered burns on his hands and face and was flown to a burn center in Salt Lake City, NBC Montana r eported.
The explosion destroyed the 1,500-gallon (5,678-liter) storage tank and peeled some metal siding off the building.
It was fortunate there were no other people in the building at the time, Osborne said.
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