Jean Lachance, one of the workers who died at the Bushville plant where a violent explosion killed two more victims on Monday, burned more than 90% of his body, and, like his colleagues, was hit by “an explosion of heat above 1,000 degrees Celsius.”
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At least it was explained by his brother, Mario Lachance, who returned to the tragic events of Monday in an interview with Mario Dumont.
Jean Lachance, 51, has worked at SDB Séchoirs de Beauce for 28 years.
When his brother first heard of the fire on Monday, he wasn’t worried about it.
“Knowing my brother, in my head he was going out there, looking out and trying to help the world. This is the picture I was thinking when I was told [l’explosion]”,” he tells on the airwaves of LCN.
However, the real picture was much darker. Jean Lachance was taken to the hospital, and soon he was put to sleep and intubated.
It’s hard for Mario Lachance to hear from his brother in the whirlwind of events. When his cousin called him, he realized the gravity of the situation.
“She said to me: Mario, go up!” […] I was told it burned, but not 90%! I wasn’t told what it was ‘third degree’, nor was I told the extent of the injuries. “
Nerve endings destroyed
“The intervention in St. George made it possible to see my brother still alive, even if it was the machinery that kept him going. Otherwise, for a few more minutes, they could not intubate him and he left. At 90% of his upper body burns, It’s like a chain reaction,” explains Mario Lachance.
Jean Lachance was then transferred to the Hôpital de l’Enfant-Jésus in Quebec.
They were exposed to a heat wave of over 1000 degrees. They had a flash of heat. What I knew was that he was afloat. The doctor told us that in the case of third-degree burns, there is no pain, all the nerve endings in the body have disappeared. We’ve been told that it’s not uncommon for people to get to the emergency room while walking, but the inflammation is so important that it starts to swell everywhere,” the victim’s brother explains in hindsight.
Jean Lachance, 51, and Martin Roy, 50, both of St. George, were killed in the blast, as well as Mario Moran, 57, of Bushville. Both were the father of one son.
They had intervened to try to put out the fire that broke out in the company, but the explosion occurred. The three parents died of severe burns.
“I have applied to these three people for the Medal of Courage. I know it is a process that can take a long time, but tell yourself I have already submitted to them,” concludes the sad man.
