One Killed, One Injured in Menlo Park Lab Fire

A methane explosion in a Willow Road laboratory has killed one worker and injured another.

Scientist Adrian Martin, 56, was transferring methane, helium, and nitrogen into one container at Membrane Technology and Research Inc. shortly after 4 p.m. when the mixture burst into flames. His co-workers dragged him from the burning lab into a hallway.

Firefighters performed CPR on the San Jose man but he succumbed to his injuries.

A woman co-worker standing near the door of the lab was thrown clear and survived with damage to her eardrum. She was taken to Stanford Hospital, where she remains in "moderate" condition.

Membrane Technology and Research Inc. conducts research on petrochemicals and has performed the operation many times without incident, said Menlo Park Fire Chief Harold Schapelhouman.

Fourteen fire engines responded to the call with Redwood City, Foster City, San Carlos, and Woodside fire departments providing back-up.

At 8 p.m. six fire engines remained on the scene and members of a hazmat team ran large, rapid air movement (RAM) fans to speed the dissipation of methane gas leaking from a four-foot tank.

“The other employees were the ones that rushed in the laboratory at some risk to themselves, secured the cylinders, pulled the victim out into the corridor," Schapelhouman said. "They deserve a lot of credit for that."

Schapelhouman said the staffers "obviously very shocked and stunned" by the man's death.

"It’s very tragic," he said.

Schapelhouman said the fire and its aftermath pose no safety risk to residents in the surrounding communities of Menlo Park and East Palo Alto.

-- Bay City News contributed to this report.