A 39-year-old Hoffman Estates man was hospitalized with serious burns after an explosion Thursday at a propane tank refilling station west of St. Charles, police and fire officials said.
Russell Mazur, an employee of Country Gas, 40W370 Illinois Highway 64, was listed in serious condition at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where he was airlifted after being taken to Delnor-Community Hospital in Geneva.
Elburn Fire Chief Martin Strausberger said Mazur suffered burns on his face and hands, escaping more serious injuries by getting out of the building moments before the roof and walls collapsed.
The explosion occurred at 11:10 a.m., less than a minute after witnesses said Mazur walked into the small brick building in back of the Country Gas offices.
“I don’t think he even had time to start filling any tanks, it happended that quick,” Strausberger said. About $100,000 in damage occurred, he estimated.
The Illinois state fire marshal’s office was called in to investigate the cause of the explosion.