July 12, 2016
A detailed report on the March 16 UHawaii incident concludes that an electrostatic discharge (static electricity) was the cause of the explosion of the flammable gas mixture used, NOT that a pressure gauge that was not intrinsically safe caused a spark (which is what the fire department concluded in their initial investigation). However, “the overall underlying cause of the accident was failure to recognize and control the hazards of an explosive gas mixture of hydrogen and oxygen,” the UCCLS report says.