Beaver Aquatics About Us

Bryan Erickson's Account (April 1999)

Bryan's week started on Monday (April 19) Kevin Bates, (Bryan's right hand), wasn't feeling very well. So after harrassing him, Bryan sent him home. A customer came in with questions about his dive computer. As he was dealing with him, another fellow came in with a tank in need of a fill. Hydro date checked (05/98), VIP checked (05/98). Bryan took the tank into the back and attached the fill whip, checked the pressure regulator and turned on the airbanks as he turned back to the front of the store to look after the customers while it filled. There had been a flow restrictor recently installed by Aqua Tech West in the fall, so a fill process took somewhere around 3-5 minutes, depending on how much air was in the tank when it arrived. After 1-2 minutes the cylinder exploded into 3 different pieces, (guesstimated pressure 2200PSI) the valve (not one of the pieces) was still attached to the fill whip.

Later Bryan had checked the burst disc which was intact. The cylinder was manufactured by Luxfer 9/74. By the appearance of the cylinder it was in very good condition. No corrosion around the neck area, no dents, hardly even a scratch on the original paint and decals (USD). After the explosion the pieces were recovered and the interior was examined. NO pits, it looks perfect, the slight discolourization on both sides of the threads leads me to believe neck cracks.

This account tells the immediate story concerning the explosion. The subsequent story would include dealing with government agencies, insurance companies and investigators for the next 12 months looking for answers. What was frustrating on our part was the lack of knowledge about the concerns for older aluminum scuba tanks. Damages ended up to be in the $20,000 CAD range. We were extremely lucky that we were only dealing with damages and not injuries or death. The investigation did come to the conclusion that sustained load cracking was responsible for the burst.

After surviving this incident we have developed strong feelings about the need for all tests on Scuba tanks including Visual Plus (eddy current detection). We have experienced the potential that these tanks contain. No one else has to experience this same devastating situation if these tests are being done by everyone.

Please keep your tanks Hydrostatic and Visual Plus inspections up to date so YOU don't have to experience a SCUBA tank explosion.