Dive shop owner loses leg as tank explodes

The Associated Press
Saturday, March 18, 2000


KEY LARGO -- The owner of a scuba-diving shop had his left leg severed
just below the hip Friday when an air tank he was filling exploded.

William Gordon, 66, lost his left leg when a 6-by-12-inch piece of
shrapnel tore through the limb, said Bill Surina, Monroe County's
assistant fire marshal.

Gordon does not have tank filling equipment at his own shop, and was
using equipment at a neighboring shop, Surina said.

George Yates, who works nearby, said he heard the explosion and went
to Gordon's aid.

"We wrapped towels around his hip and we got his severed leg back and
put it in ice," Yates said.

Gordon was flown to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, but doctors
were unable to reattach the leg, Surina said. Gordon was listed in
serious condition late Friday after surgery.




Dennis Hawkins
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