Explosion at Troy medical facility leads to 5-year-old's death

TROY — At 7:54 a.m. Jan. 31, the Troy Fire Department and the Troy Police Department responded to a report of a hyperbaric chamber explosion that killed a 5-year-old boy from Royal Oak. 

The explosion took place at the Oxford Center, located at 165 Kirts Blvd.

Upon arrival, it was determined the child inside the chamber had died. 

“I think the mother of the child also suffered some injuries to her arms as she was standing right next to the chamber when the explosion occurred,” Troy Police Department Lt. Ben Hancock said during a press conference that was held at 10:30 a.m. Jan. 31 at the Troy Police Department.

The Oxford Center provides therapy to children for a wide variety of physical and mental health conditions.

“Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, or HBOT, is a specialized form of medical treatment administered by delivering 100% pure oxygen to the body through increased atmospheric pressure greater than 1.3 ATA in an enclosed hard chamber,” the Oxford Center’s website states.

The oxygen from a hyperbaric chamber has up to three times the amount of oxygen that a normal room has. The presence of such a high amount of oxygen in a pressurized environment can make it extremely combustible, according to a press release from the Troy Fire Department.

“Our initial research shows that this type of incident is uncommon,” the release states.

The fire caused by the explosion was contained to the room where the explosion occurred, with no extensive damage to the facility itself.

The situation remains under active investigation. 

Social workers from the Oakland Community Health Network have made themselves available to work with emergency personnel who responded to the scene and medical staff at the facility.

“As far as our investigation goes with the Fire Department, we don’t really have an investigation,” Troy Fire Department Lt. Keith Young said during the press conference. “We took our initial investigation for the fire and the explosion, but from that everything’s going to get turned over to the state.”

According to a statement from The Oxford Center, Jan. 31 was an “exceptionally difficult day for all of us.”

“The safety and wellbeing of the children we serve is our highest priority,” the statement reads. “Nothing like this has happened in our more than 15 years of providing this type of therapy. We do not know why or how this happened and will participate in all of the investigations that now need to take place.”

No further details were available at press time.

Call Staff Writer Sarah Wright at (586) 498-1068.