Investigators determine cause of explosion at Kansas State Fair that injured 6 people
A canned food item that was stored too close to a food warmer inside a trailer exploded at the Kansas State Fair Tuesday, injuring six people, investigators say.
The explosion and subsequent fire was reported at 6:28 p.m. at the Fry Shack food trailer in the 500 20th Avenue on the Kansas State Fairgrounds in Hutchinson, a Wednesday state fair news release said.
“It was determined that the cause of the incident was an overpressure of a canned food product which had been stored in the vicinity of a food warmer,” the release said. “The canned food item got too hot, causing the overpressure event to occur.”
Out of the six people injured, four declined medical care at the fairgrounds. Two were taken to Hutchinson Regional Medical Center with lacerations, treated and released that same evening.
The incident was investigated by the Hutchinson and Kansas state fire marshals.
The 10-day Kansas State Fair is held after Labor Day and attracts around 350,000 people annually. It’s scheduled to end on Sept. 15.
This story was originally published September 11, 2024 at 1:31 PM with the headline "Investigators determine cause of explosion at Kansas State Fair that injured 6 people."