Caravanners and motorhomers are again being urged to exercise extreme caution when handling or using gas bottles.
The appeal from police follows an horrific accident in the New South Wales town of Casino which has left a man fighting for his life in Royal Brisbane Hospital.
The 33-year-old reportedly suffered burns to 80% of his body after a gas bottle exploded in his caravan at Casino’s Glen Villa Resort.
The Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter airlifted the man to the Royal Brisbane Hospital where he remains in critical condition, and is being treated at the burns unit. It is understood the man suffered severe burns to his face and most of his body.
“Detectives and forensic services police attended and our investigation is ongoing,” Lismore police Inspector, Matt Kehoe, told the Northern Star newspaper. “We don’t have any evidence to suggest the cause of the explosion was suspicious”.
The explosion prompted Inspector Kehoe to warn grey nomads and others of the need for caution when using gas bottles.
“Do be careful,” he said. “And, wherever possible, don’t use gas bottles in confined spaces because this sort of accident can happen.”
It has been reported in The Northern Star [Lismore] that the man told police that he was “trying to kill himself”.