An Irish Steel worker has been awarded nearly £12,000 damages for molten metal burns he suffered at the company's Haulbowline plant in Cork Harbour two years ago. Mr Michael Keating told Midleton Circuit Court yesterday that he ran for his life a split second before an explosion that showered him with molten metal.
"My helmet was blown off and the hot steel went straight through my clothes," he said.
Prompt action by workmates who stripped off the remains of his protective clothing and put him under a special shower saved his life, he added.
Mr Keating (39), of Elm Grove, Cobh, had been working with Irish Steel for 20 years. His job was to operate a vessel containing 120 tonnes of molten metal, and he was carrying out maintenance work on the container following a breakdown at the foundry the previous day.
He was burning off solidified steel with an oxyacetyline lance and was wearing a thick woollen protective suit, gloves, helmet and visor. "There was a blockage caused by the solid steel, and I knew it was going to blow. A shower of pressurised metal went straight through my clothes. I felt a fierce burning sensation," said Mr Keating.
At the emergency department of Cork University Hospital the doctor told him he was lucky to be alive. "He said most people caught in an oxygen explosion died," said Mr Keating, who suffered burns to his face, arms and hands. He had been advised to stay out of sunlight.
Judge Patrick Moran said Mr Keating had experienced severe shock and nasty injuries while working in a high-risk environment. He awarded him damages of £11,750 plus costs.