Daytona Auto Accident Attorney

Federal safety rules still not mandatory in wake of fatal Daytona plant explosion

"Nothing will allow me to escape"

Michael Martin would give anything to forget Jan. 11, 2006.

But he can't. That day is all over his scarred skin, which was nearly melted off when a tank brimming with 3,000 gallons of methanol exploded inches away from him.

It's in his nightmares, when he sees an agonized co-worker literally on fire screaming. It's in his back, when the ruptured disk he suffered jumping from two rooftops to escape the flames reminds him what happened that day at the Bethune Point Wastewater Treatment Plant.

"Nothing will allow me to escape," Martin said.

Martin was one of three city workers trying to remove a damaged metal canopy over the tank that day. As Martin and another worker stood in a cherry picker and took cutting torches to the roof, their sparks and flames ignited methanol vapors.

"After it exploded, I climbed up on the roof to get away from the fire," he said. "Then, I jumped onto another lower roof, and then onto the ground."

The other man using the torch couldn't escape and died that day. The man operating a crane that was lifting off sections of the roof died the next day.

Martin said he wasn't expected to survive but his wife fought doctors' suggestions to remove him from life-support machines.

Martin's body will never be the same, and his life will never be the same.

Before he underwent physical therapy, he said he could hardly walk. The burns went so deep some leg muscle had to be removed, he said.

"My legs still ache sometimes, but the doctors say there's nothing they can do," he said. "My left leg can just go out when I'm shopping for a second or two. It's like a light switch.

About a year ago, he started driving again. For a few years after the accident, when he tried to drive, memory problems would kick in midtrip and he'd forget where he was going. He can work in his yard but he has to bundle up in protective clothing to shield his skin and he has to watch out for overheating.

Sometimes, a project around the house can sideline him for two or three days while he struggles to get his pain level back down.

The skin on his hands will ache if he doesn't keep it well-lubricated and, sometimes, he wakes up in pain in the middle of the night and has to put on lotion. Sometimes, just using his hands will make them feel arthritic. The skin on his back is heavily damaged and it can still blister and open up, he said.

Fatal DeLand car accident blamed on drunk driving | Daytona Beach ...

A recent serious car accident in DeLeon Springs has interrupted the lives of several young people. The accident left a 22-year-old DeLand man dead and injured another 22-year-old DeLand man and the 23-year-old driver. The driver was charged with manslaughter because authorities attribute the automobile accident on his alcohol use.

Drunk driving is a serious problem in Daytona Beach and throughout Volusia County. Drunk drivers are less able to control their vehicles and far more likely to be involved in fatal accidents. Frequently a drunk driver can drink and drive for several years before causing a fatal accident, but when an accident does happen the resulting personal injuries are devastating to everyone involved.

Authorities say that the DeLeon Springs accident occurred when the 23-year-old Georgia man lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a tree by the intersection of State Road 11 and Arredondo Grant Road.

In a previous post we discussed a study into the impact of a driver's blood alcohol level on the severity of car accident injuries. Even drivers with a 0.01 percent blood alcohol level were in car accidents that involved injuries which were 37 percent more severe than car accidents involving completely sober drivers. The average speed and severity of each car accident increased with every 0.01 percent blood alcohol increment in the driver's blood.

The 23-year-old Georgia man's blood alcohol level at the time of the accident was not reported, but he faces charges of DUI manslaughter, serious bodily injury by DUI and is being held on a $10,000 bond.

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