Second Man Charged In Deadly Hyperbaric Chamber Blast
FT. LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami) – A second man charged in a deadly hyperbaric chamber explosion three years ago in Lauderdale By The Sea turned himself in to authorities over the weekend.
On Sunday, Dr. George Daviglus, 81, was formally charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child and manslaughter and released on bond.
In May, 2009, Francesco Martinisi, 4, and his grandmother Vincenza Pesce, 62, suffered critical burns when a hyperbaric chamber caught fire at the Ocean Hyperbaric Center. Pesce died the next day and Martinisi survived only a few weeks before passing away. The boy, who suffered from cerebral palsy, had traveled to South Florida from Italy where the treatment is outlawed.
Lance Bark, 51, who was a technician and safety director at the time, was booked into the Broward Jail earlier.
Investigators said Bark and Daviglus, who was the center's medical director, failed to make the sure the chambers were properly grounded and maintained. Investigators noted various electrical issues with the "Vickers" hyperbaric chambers such as burned wiring and soldered exposed wiring. The chambers were dusty, and some were rigged using electrical extension cords taped together with electrical tape and broken indicator lights on the chamber controls.
Bark and Daviglus also reportedly failed to have the required annual inspections of the chambers and failed to make sure the patients were wearing the proper attire. They didn't know the proper decompression procedures once the fire started and didn't properly supervise the patients while they were inside the chamber, according the sheriff's office investigation.
Investigators believe the fire was started by static electricity inside the chamber. It took nearly two minutes to free the two, who were completely engulfed in flames.
In addition, detectives found a 2008 letter to the center detailing age-related problems with the "Vickers" hyperbaric chambers indicating that the employees knew of the problems. The chamber in question was built in 1967 and refurbished in 1984.
