A tragic explosion at a Michigan medical center on Friday claimed the life of a 5-year-old boy after a fire broke out inside a hyperbaric chamber filled with oxygen. The incident occurred at the Oxford Center in Troy, Michigan, just north of Detroit, around 8 a.m. Emergency responders arrived to find the boy, from Royal Oak, Michigan, dead in the wreckage of the chamber.

The specific treatment the boy was receiving and the cause of the fire that led to the explosion are still unclear, with investigators working to determine what happened. Fire officials have noted that such an incident is extremely rare.

Lt. Keith Young of the Troy Fire Department stated that in his 10 years of service, he had never encountered anything like this. “This is an anomaly,” he remarked, highlighting the unusual nature of the tragedy.

The Oxford Center confirmed that the fire originated inside the hyperbaric chamber, which is filled with 100% oxygen—a substance that is highly combustible. The explosion itself was intense, engulfing the center in flames, though the fire was quickly contained with minimal damage. Despite the quick response, the center will remain closed for an indefinite period, leaving many questioning the safety of oxygen-filled chambers.

The boy’s mother, who was standing nearby when the explosion occurred, suffered arm injuries. This tragic event raises serious concerns about the safety protocols in place at the center, which specializes in hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

Founded in 2008, the Oxford Center offers a variety of therapies, including hyperbaric oxygen treatments. The chambers, which resemble large glass pods, operate under air pressure two to three times higher than normal and are used to treat serious conditions like decompression sickness and air bubbles in blood vessels. However, these oxygen-rich environments come with a significant risk: they are highly flammable.

While hyperbaric oxygen therapy has proven to be life-saving for certain medical conditions, experts warn that strict safety measures are necessary to prevent disasters like the one that unfolded at the Oxford Center. Sadly, it seems the center’s precautions failed, resulting in the devastating loss of a young life.