Explosion at mobile home injures man

An explosion at a Holts Summit mobile home on Sunday injured one man, sending him to the burn unit at University Hospital in Columbia.

The man, who has not been identified, was demolishing the trailer in the 1100 block of Spencer Lane around 3 p.m.

As he cut into or around a metal barrel, the flammable liquid inside the barrel ignited and exploded, throwing flames on the man and the trailer, said Jason Sevart, captain of the mostly volunteer Holts Summit Fire Protection District, who responded to the call.

"We don't know if he was cutting on top of the barrel or cutting the barrel itself, but some kind of concentrate - the label was worn off - exploded," Sevart said. "One of our firefighters lives across the street from the trailer, and he called it in."

The man was alone while working on the trailer, and no one else was injured in the explosion.

It was not clear whether the man lived in the trailer or was demolishing it for someone else, Sevart said.