5-Year-Old Boy Killed in Hyperbaric Chamber Explosion at Michigan Medical Center

TROY, Mich.—On Friday morning, a pressurized oxygen chamber at a medical facility in suburban Detroit exploded, resulting in the tragic death of a 5-year-old patient and injuries to his mother.

The incident took place around 8 a.m. at the Oxford Center in Troy, located north of Detroit.

The young child, who was from Royal Oak, Michigan, was inside the chamber and was pronounced dead at the site.

“The child’s mother sustained injuries to her arms as she was right beside the chamber at the time of the explosion,” stated Troy police Lt. Ben Hancock. “We are still unclear about the specific reason for the child’s treatment at the center that day.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, hyperbaric oxygen therapy enhances oxygen delivery to the body by providing pure oxygen in a sealed environment at higher than normal atmospheric pressure.

This therapy is utilized for treating conditions such as decompression sickness, severe tissue diseases or injuries, air bubbles trapped in blood vessels, carbon monoxide poisoning, and tissue damage due to radiation therapy.

Hyperbaric chambers are filled with 100% oxygen, creating an atmosphere that contains up to five times more oxygen than a standard room, explained Troy Fire Lt. Keith Young during a press briefing on Friday.

“The presence of such an abundant amount of oxygen in a pressurized setting can render it highly combustible,” Young noted. “We’ve conducted some initial inquiries. This situation is very rare, and we are still determining the factors that led to it.”

While staff from the center were also present in the room, no additional injuries were reported.

The explosion was confined to the chamber itself, and firefighters had to extinguish a blaze in the room, Young reported.

The Oxford Center stated in an email that a fire originated within the hyperbaric oxygen chamber.

“The safety and wellbeing of the children we serve is our utmost priority,” the center emphasized. “In our 15 years of offering this therapy, we have never encountered such an incident. We are investigating the causes behind this event and will cooperate fully with authorities.”

The state will oversee the investigation into the explosion and subsequent fire, Young confirmed.