When two Lone Star Management LLC employees were directed to use a gas-powered forklift to move pallets of fireworks and cardboard out of an explosives storage facility, the gas ignited, causing an explosion and fire. Within seconds, the trapped employees became engulfed in flames. The inferno took the life of one 28-year-old worker and left a 43-year-old co-worker to suffer with burns over 80 percent of his body and the possibility of never working again.
OSHA found nine serious safety violations at the Pittsburgh, Kansas warehouse following an investigation of the Aug. 12, 2014, incident. As a result, the agency cited Lone Star Management, which specializes in importing and distributing Class 1 fireworks.