A Canadian man was severely burned in a gas explosion that occurred last Wednesday evening at a natural gas processing location about 9 miles east of Canadian on Lake Marvin Road.

Energy Transfer LP employee Marc Crooks, 42, had arrived at the location sometime before 8:40 pm and pulled his pickup up to a frac tank when his engine died. A co-worker en route to pick up Crooks was approaching the site when the explosion occurred.

Crooks suffered burns on over 81 percent of his body and was transported to Hemphill County Hospital in Canadian before being airlifted to the UMC Health System Burn Center in Lubbock. On Friday, his wife, Rachelle, asked for prayers after speaking with Crooks’ doctor.

“They are saying … he will go through about 17 different surgeries,” she reported in a Facebook post. “His vitals are all good for the most part, and he is very responsive. He knows when his loved ones are speaking and that means the world.”

“We know the statistics of victims with injuries this bad, but we also know just how tough our Marc is,” she added. “He will pull through this with the help of all our prayers. Prayers for his comfort, for his organs to stay healthy, for his infections to heal and not spread, prayers to keep sicknesses such as pneumonia away—most of all, pray for not only his strength but ours, too.”

On Monday, Crooks’ daughter, Jada Nicole, reported that he had had his first surgery for a skin graft on his back. The surgeons plan to use Crooks’ DNA to begin growing more of his own skin in a lab—a procedure that is expected to be lengthy. She reported that Crooks did well in surgery. “Dad is being sooo strong and such a fighter,” she wrote. “We’re all so very proud of him. We appreciate all of the prayers! Please continue to pray for my daddy, he needs all the prayers he can get.”

Hemphill County Sheriff’s Office dispatchers reported the explosion around 8:40 pm Wednesday evening, sending firefighters to the Energy Transfer Plant on Lake Marvin Road to put the tank fires out. “I was coming down Hackberry Trail,” said Canadian VFD Fire Chief Scott Brewster. “I looked up and could see a big, old cloud coming up. Then I saw the flames.”

A Texas Railroad Commission investigation of the accident may solve the mystery of what caused the explosion. Brewster believes that the humidity in the air, and the absence of wind, allowed the vapor to build up, causing the truck engine to die.

While waiting for his ride, Crooks ran a pig, filling up two tanks and the frac tank with fluid. During that process, something sparked and ignited the vapor. The explosion was so powerful, Brewster said, “The whole hilltop took off…the grass and everything. Stuff plum to the other side of the location caught on fire.”

Firefighters were on scene for nearly three hours, Brewster said Tuesday. “They had people on-site, but it was too dangerous. We just let it burn. The tanks were plum full.”

Canadian VFD was called back out to the location the next morning, he said. “That’s when we knew it didn’t pop the top. The thief hatches were closed, and we couldn’t get any foam down there. It was burning out the vent pipes, too. There was nothing we could do.”

HOW TO HELP

A fund has been established at Happy State Bank, where Rachelle is employed, for the benefit of Marc and Rachelle Crooks. All donations made to this account will go directly to the family to help with their medical, travel, and other expenses. All donations should be made payable to “FBO Marc Crooks.” For more information, please call Happy State Bank at 806.323.2265.

The Canadian Wildcat football team staged an impromptu car wash Saturday in the InterBank parking lot. All donations collected will go to help with medical and other related expenses.