Fort Lauderdale Personal Injury Lawyers

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is used for a variety of health problems, including cerebral palsy, diving injuries, gangrene and other problems. Patients are placed in a chamber and given concentrated doses of pure oxygen in hopes of spurning healing in their affected areas. Explosions in such facilities are seen as exceedingly rare in the United States.

Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened today at a facility in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, according to the Sun-Sentinel:

“A woman and a 4-year-old boy were critically injured in an explosion at a hyperbaric oxygen chamber facility late this morning, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said.

Lorraine Nelson, a spokeswoman for Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital, said both victims are being treated in the Ryder Trauma Center’s burn unit. The second patient was en route. No family members were at the hospital, she said, and no names were available.

The boy was flown first to Broward General Medical Center. Broward Sheriff Fire-Rescue spokesman Mike Jachles said the boy was badly burned and is in critical condition. So was the woman, who is in her 40s or 50s and is believed to be a relative of the boy but not his mother.

Their conditions were not immediately released. Both suffered second and third degree burns all over their body, Jachles said.

Hope Fine, who runs a freestanding Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy clinic called South Florida Center For H.O.P.E. in Deerfield Beach, said if the hyperbaric chamber exploded, it could be the first such incident in the United States.

“The last accident was at least 15 or 16 years ago in Asia, because the patient brought in a hand warmer,” she said. “These chambers are safe if you do it correctly. You have to take precautions because you’re dealing with 100 percent oxygen.”

Clearly, someone made a tragic mistake in this situation. If you have been harmed due to the negligence of a business, contact the Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyers at the law firm of Bernstein & Maryanoff today to schedule a free initial consultation. The firm has decades of experience in fighting for the rights of those wrongfully injured.