Vancouver man killed in commercial building explosion in north Clark County

Vancouver’s Melecio Herrera-Viveros was identified Thursday as the man killed in an explosion last week while installing vinyl flooring at a commercial building in north Clark County.

The Clark County Medical Examiner said the 53-year-old man died from “thermal injury and inhalation of products of combustion.” His death was ruled an accident.

Clark County Fire District 10 responded at about 2:15 p.m. April 1 to reports of a fire in the 2600 block of Northeast Horton Road.

Assistant Fire Marshal Curtis Eavenson said a work crew was using a torch to warm up vinyl flooring before installing it, because of the cold temperature inside of the building. The torch ignited the highly flammable adhesive and caused a vapor explosion.

Eavenson said a second worker was able to escape before the explosion. Fire District 10 said it was the agency’s second fatal fire this year.

The building had been vacant for a while, Eavenson said, until someone recently began renovating it.

Eavenson said the fire caused about $75,000 worth of damage but that the building remains structurally sound.