Contractor dies from burns in ConAgra blast

Curtis Ray Poppe, a contractor who was working at ConAgra's Slim Jim plant the day it exploded nearly six months ago, died from his injuries Thursday at the N.C. Jaycee Burn Center at UNC Hospitals.

Poppe, 55, was badly burned June 9 when a blast rocked the Garner plant, killing three and injuring dozens more. He had been a patient at the burn center since the explosion.

"We were saddened to hear this news, and ConAgra Foods offers our deepest sympathies to Mr. Poppe's family and friends," company spokesman Dave Jackson said.

Poppe lived in the Piedmont town of Stony Point and worked for Energy Systems Analysts, a water-heater maker based in Hickory and owned by Poppe's brother. The company was hired to install a commercial water heater at ConAgra earlier this year and has been partly blamed for the fatal explosion.

Investigators with the U.S. Chemical Safety Board said contractors installing a water heater likely vented natural gas inside the building before the explosion while purging a gas line. The workers should have vented the line outdoors, investigators said.

Poppe and Energy Systems Analysts were targeted in a civil lawsuit brought by several employees injured during the explosion. The lawsuit alleges that the company was not licensed in North Carolina to install or work on pipes that deliver natural gas.

The state Department of Labor has not completed its investigation into the explosion. Its report is expected next month. The Department of Labor has the authority to cite and sanction private companies after workplace incidents.

Poppe was a native of Wisconsin and is survived by his wife of 35 years and two grown sons.

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