An Orange Walk man is on life support following a gas tank explosion

Danny Ponce

An Orange Walk resident is tonight on life support following an explosion of a butane gas tank at Camp ten of the Shipyard Community. On Tuesday morning around eleven o’clock, thirty year old Danny Ponce was assisting a friend, who works for a butane company, was injured when a tank they were filling exploded. The nozzle detached itself from the tank and hit Ponce to the right side of the head causing serious injuries. Witnesses say that Ponce fell to the ground in an unconsciousness state and was transported to the Northern Regional Hospital and then to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital where he underwent surgery early this morning. News Five spoke with Ponce’s sister, Marilyn, who says that he is in a critical condition.

Marilyn Ponce, Sister of Accident Victim

“According to what I know, yesterday he was in Shipyard filling a tank and eventually too much pressure of the tank came to his face. And what I understand, in his skull, the bones broke. Early this morning, he got a surgery and in two days the doctors supposed to come in and get a cat-scan and from that then he is going to decide. I understand that probably he is going to lose an eye right now…that’s what I know.”

Duane Moody

Marilyn Ponce

“The tank exploded on him? What really happened?”

Marilyn Ponce

“It is the pressure; the pressure of the butane gas and it is just the pressure and the tank was what hit him on the face. He is not working with Belmont, he was just doing a little extra with that person and unfortunately it is an incident that can happen to anybody. But no, he is not working with them.”

Duane Moody

“What are the doctors saying? What’s the prognosis? Is it bad, is he going to make it? What?”

Marilyn Ponce

“Right now, we don’t know because he just went through the surgery as I mentioned before and in two days, then they are going to do him another analysis and depends on that. Right now he is responding slowly, but he is responding to all the medications….really I don’t know.”