Abstract: At approximately 1:30 p.m. on June 29, 2005, Employee #1, 39-year old worker, was cutting the top off of an empty 55-gallon drum that contained a Styrene monomer. Employee #1 was using a Bosch handheld radial saw equipped with a metal blade. Employee #1 was working on the last empty drum. It appears that the bungs were not removed, and therefore the drum was not rinsed. Employee #1 laid the drum down on its side and was cutting the bottom off of the drum, when it exploded. The drum caught on fire, blowing the bottom off of the drum and sending it flying against the wall. Employee #1 was burned over 80 percent of his body and died on July 5, 2005. The previous empty drums that Employee #1 cut through had the bungs removed. There were three other flammable resin UN 1866 drums that he cut the tops off of successfully. These drums were marked as Xylene.