Employees of Rick’s Auto Body on Missoula’s west side gather outside the shop last Monday after a fire that sent two other employees to the hospital, one with serious injuries.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Missoula Fire Department are investigating last Monday’s explosion at Rick’s Auto Body, which killed a man working in the paint shop.

Bruce Hall, 44, died early Tuesday at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle from burns suffered when static electricity caused lacquer fumes to ignite in an enclosed area in the back of the shop.

Hall was pouring the lacquer from a barrel to a smaller container through a funnel when the fumes exploded, Missoula Fire Marshal Gordy Hughes said. Hall’s family said that he suffered third-degree burns over 95 percent of his body.

Rick Booth, who owns Rick’s Auto Body, said the entire shop is devastated by the death of a co-worker.

Hall, who lived in Missoula, had worked at the shop for five years in the detail department and provided customers with rides when their vehicles were in the shop, Booth said.

Customers were very fond of Hall, whom Booth described as a quiet guy who liked his job. “It’s a tragedy,” Booth said. “It’s not what we expect to have happen when we come to work.”

He said he isn’t sure what OSHA or the fire department will be investigating, but said he assumes they are looking at what caused the elements to ignite.

They may also be looking at a faulty piece of equipment, he said.

He said there may be a mechanical issue with part of the fan that shuts off when it senses fire.

“I want to find out what it was, so we can fix the right thing,” he said.

Hughes said his inspectors would be looking into the ventilation system and other safety measures in the building. The fire department’s investigation won’t be completed until next week.

Booth said there were a number of precautionary measures that worked to stymie the fire on Monday, or the explosion could have been worse. “But it could have been a lot better,” he added.

“There are a lot of safety mechanisms back there and a lot of training paid off,” Booth said. “But in the bigger picture, something went wrong.”

A second employee who was injured in the explosion was released Monday from St. Patrick Hospital, Hughes said. He suffered minor injuries resulting from burns and vapor inhalation.