Broward Center Reopens After Deadly Explosion
LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA (CBS4) - More than a year and a half an explosion killed a woman and her grandson, a South Florida clinic which offers treatments in hyperbaric chambers has re-opened.
Neubauer Hyperbaric Oxygen Neurologic Center closed after the May 2009 accident due to fire damage.
Four year old Francesco Martinisi and his 62-year old grandmother Vincenza Pesce were inside a pressurized oxygen chamber at the center in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea when something went terribly wrong. There was an explosion inside the chamber and a flash fire fatally burned Pesce. Martinisi, suffered severe burns over 90 percent of his body; he died days later at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami.
Hyperbaric oxygen chambers are used to breathe pure oxygen while under increased air pressure as a means to treat a variety of medical conditions. Martinisi was undergoing therapy for cerebral palsy and traveled from Italy for the treatment.
Authorities said a blast dislodged a tube attached to the hyperbaric chamber, which resulted in an explosion and flash fire.
A staff doctor says the clinic has implemented new safety rules, including prohibiting companions inside a chamber. It also aims to be more vigilant about scanning patients for anything that could cause a spark.
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