Propane Tank Explosion at Bair Lake Bible Camp Injures Camp’s Facilities Manager

A propane tank explosion at Bair Lake Bible Camp in Jones, Michigan, injured the camp’s facilities manager and damaged one of the camp’s cabins on July 8, 2018. 

The employee, David Stiles, is a resident of Jones. Investigators told the Kalamazoo News that they believe Stiles was doing maintenance work on a cabin when the explosion happened. The explosion also set the cabin on fire. According to the Cass County Sheriff, the fire was put out by the Newberg Township fire department. 

Stiles was airlifted to South Bend Memorial Hospital. The camp’s Facebook page reports that he is in critical condition with burns. 

The Facebook page also says that at the time of the explosion, no children were in the camp. They added, “This was an isolated incident due to an equipment malfunction that provides no future safety risk for any of our campers or staff.” They requested prayers for the injured man. 

The Facebook page later carried a report from Stiles’ wife, who wrote, “He is in critical condition with burns covering 90% of his body. He is deeply sedated and will be for some time. The next few days are important. After that, he faces a long recovery that will be brutal (that was the doctor’s term).” She also requested prayers.

Responses to the Bible Camp Facebook posts showed an outpouring of support and concern for the injured man. 

Propane tank explosion at Bair Lake Bible Camp shows the fragility of life

Explosions like the propane tank explosion at Bair Lake Bible Camp seem like they come out of nowhere. An ordinary maintenance task, strictly routine, transforms into a catastrophe in an instant, and people’s lives are changed forever. Recovery from serious burn injuries is slow, expensive, and very painful.

The compassionate lawyers at Pritzker Hageman have worked for years to protect people with burn injuries. They have won multi-million-dollar settlements to ensure the best medical care for their clients, and to make sure that the survivors’ needs are met today and far into the future. 

If you wonder if you have a legal case, you can call and ask them, for free. There’s no obligation. Just call 1-888-377-8900, or fill out the on-line form.

Sources

Detroit Free Press. “Authorities: Bible camp worker injured in propane tank explosion.” Associated Press, July 9, 2018.

Solis, Ben. “Propane tank explosion injures Bair Lake Bible Camp employee.” Kalamazoo News, July 8, 2018.