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Exploding keg kills Redhook Brewery worker


PORTSMOUTH — A brewery worker died from injuries related to the explosion of a beer keg at the Redhook Ale Brewery Tuesday morning, said Portsmouth Regional Hospital spokeswoman Nancy Notis.

The worker, who has not yet been identified, was a man in his 20s or early 30s, said Assistant Fire Chief Steve Achilles. According to the assistant fire chief, the employee had been pressurizing kegs with air as part of a cleaning process to remove residual beer from them.

“The keg failed and exploded and he was injured by parts of the keg,” Achilles said.

Firefighters were dispatched to the brewery, located 1 Redhook Way at the Pease Tradeport, at 7:06 a.m. for an initial report about a beer keg explosion which seriously injured the worker, said Achilles. Engine 3 was the first on scene and firefighters found the worker unresponsive, with a weak pulse, and located in an area with kegs, bottles and conveyor belts, said Achilles.

Emergency medical technicians then arrived by ambulance from Station 2 and found the brewery employee in cardiac arrest, with chest and head injuries, Achilles said. He was transported to Portsmouth Regional Hospital by ambulance, with what were initially described as life-threatening injuries.

Achilles said the fire department notified the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and it was his understanding that Redhook management is being “very cooperative.”

Redhook spokesman Ted Lane said the “hearts” of brewery managers “go out to the family members” of the employee. He said Redhook is conducting its own investigation to find out what happened.

Police Lt. Russell Russo said officers were dispatched to the brewery for a police investigation. Federal officers from the bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms also responded because the accident was related to an alcohol-related facility.

The brewery pub and all tours were cancelled Tuesday.

mr x wrote:Holy fuck.

Exploding keg kills Redhook Brewery worker

The brewery pub and all tours were cancelled Tuesday.

(Portsmouth, NH) – Following Tuesday morning’s accident that killed a young brewery worker, people have been asking questions about why a keg would have exploded. RedHook Ale Brewery just issued a follow-up statement on its Facebook page with a few facts about what happened though not yet why.

All,

We are grateful for the outpouring of support that we’ve received from the community after Tuesday’s tragic accident in Portsmouth. Ben Harris had been a member of the Redhook family for more than seven years, first working at the Cataqua Pub and most recently as part of our brewing operations team. His wife, Alysha Miller, is expecting his child and is also part of the Redhook family as a server in our pub. Ben was a wonderful man, a dedicated member of our team and a friend to all who knew him. We are heartbroken by this tragedy and are grieving with the family.

We would like to thank the community and the media for respecting the family’s privacy as well as that of our employees as we mourn together. We would also like to thank our family of employees for their support in this process, as this is an extremely difficult time for all of us and our top priority is taking care of Ben’s family and our team.

There is an assessment underway to reveal exactly what happened Tuesday morning. Although the investigation is still in process, there are several facts that we can confirm:

• The accident was caused by an exploding plastic keg ;
• The keg was not owned or used by Redhook Brewery or any other CBA brewery;
• It is normal protocol for the brewery to receive kegs that aren’t ours from time to time;
• Ben was handling the keg at the time it exploded.

It is extremely important to us that we understand exactly what happened before we share additional information about this tragedy. There is an evaluation in progress and we can assure you that we will issue further information when the report is complete.

In the meantime, we ask for continued thoughts and prayers for Ben’s family, friends, and everyone touched by this accident.

The family asks that memorial contributions be made to: The Alysha Miller Harris Baby Fund c/o TD Bank, 20 International Drive, Portsmouth, NH, 03801, (603) 430-3812