Explosion unspecified · Injuries to the brain, spinal cord and severe wounds, internal injuries
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Devon Energy, Lat 47.81831974 - 103.41065730, ARNEGARD, NORTH DAKOTA 58835
on — Injuries to the brain, spinal cord and severe wounds, internal injuries, affecting the Head and trunk.
Final narrative
An employee was working in the MCC room of the natural gas-fired gas lift compressor when an explosion occurred. It is believed that the variable frequency drive ignited the hydrates in the instrument air compressor/piping causing an explosion. The employee sustained a concussion, four broken ribs, a punctured lung and burns.
Hospitalized Head and trunk Drilling fluids systems
During a workshop meeting in a hotel, an employee heard a drilling noise, so he walked outside to see what it was. An explosion occurred (possible gas line) and his face, ear, and hair were burned. He also fell and sustained a pelvic fracture.
An employee was checking the level of liquid inside the distributor truck's tank when there was a flash explosion. The employee sustaining burns to 16% of his body.
An employee was visually inspecting the drive line for a conveyor. There was an explosion in the conveyor, and the employee suffered second- and third-degree burns to both forearms.
On August 4, 2025, at 7:00 AM, an employee was approaching an area to put out a fire with an ABC fire extinguisher when an unknown material exploded and contacted their face. The employee sustained a laceration to the right cheek with an object penetrating the nasal cavity. The employee was hospitalized.
Two employees were welding pipes on a structure when an explosion occurred. Both employees sustained burns and one employee's injuries were fatal. The second employee was hospitalized.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 213111)
An employee was stepping down off a 6-inch containment platform to finish loading his truck, when his right ankle rolled. The employee sustained a fractured tibia and fibula at the right ankle and required surgery.
A service crew was pulling a pump and motor from a well. After breaking a joint of pipe loose from another joint, an employee grabbed the chain tongs to prevent the pipe from spinning in the well, so the crew could continue taking it apart. The bolt that attaches the chain to the handle of the chain tongs broke, causing the chain to swing around and strike the employee's lower right leg. The chain severely punctured his leg and fractured his tibia.
An employee arrived on location and loaded a blow-out-preventer (BOP) on a 1-ton flatbed truck. While standing on the flatbed securing the the BOP, the employee stepped into a void/hole on the flatbed surface. This caused him to lose balance and fall off the truck bed with his leg still caught in the hole. As a result, he sustained fractures to his left leg.
An employee was rigging up a location. He was using an Allen wrench to free up rotation and start the drawworks engine manually. The engine rotated and his left little finger became caught between the Allen wrench and the engine. The employee sustained an amputation to his little finger and fractures to his wrist.
An employee was on the ground working to close a trailer door. The door was caught by the wind and blew the employee backward. He landed on his back and sustained four fractured ribs, requiring hospitalization.
An employee was walking on top of boiler to close a valve. The employee fell off the boiler and landed on the floor, sustaining fractured ribs. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was exiting a loader and coming down the ladder. His hand slipped off the railing and he fell backward onto sandy ground, landing on his side. The employee was hospitalized with a fractured pelvis and a rotator cuff tear.