Smiles And Sunshine

Ryan Baldera Died A Goddamn Hero By Getting Rid Of A Deadly Chemical Accident Spill At Burlington Buffalo Wild Wings

 

WBZ: The employee who died after a chemical incident at a Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant in Burlington has been identified as 32-year-old Ryan Baldera of Lawrence. Baldera, the general manager, jumped in to help when another employee using a common cleaning agent known as Super 8 on the kitchen floor suddenly became nauseous. Fire officials say the other worker accidentally mixed a second chemical called Scale Kleen that caused a reaction. Super 8 contains sodium hypochlorite and Scale Kleen is about 50% acid. They had a chemical reaction and started bubbling.

“It was the two products that were on the floor that came in contact that caused the chemical reaction that made everybody sick,” Burlington Fire Chief Michael Patterson said.

Baldera died after being rushed to the hospital. Thirteen additional people, including employees and patrons, were also hospitalized. Baldera was married last year and was the father to a newborn baby.

“Ryan was a beloved husband, father, son, brother, and cherished uncle, nephew, and son-in-law, to his close knit family and friends,” his family said in a statement. “While devastated at this unimaginable loss, we are so very proud that Ryan died while trying to protect his fellow employees and restaurant patrons.”

Those who know Baldera said he had an underlying health condition that may have contributed to the tragedy.

“He had an asthma problem and I think he was using his inhaler outside when he started feeling his symptoms,” a man who did not want to be identified said.

“He was a really good guy and he cared about everyone,” a Buffalo Wild Wings employee told WBZ Friday.

GoFundMe page has been set up to support the Baldera family. The Burlington Area Chamber of Commerce has also set up a memorial fund:

“Ryan Baldera Memorial Fund”
Cambridge Savings Bank
214 Cambridge St.
Burlington, MA 01803

This is obviously very sad to see. A young father who went to work that day like any other normal day, not knowing that a freak accident would make it his last day. He never got to say goodbye to his loved ones, and he seemed like a great guy. Such a huge loss.

But as sad as it is, it’s important that we blog about people like this because they’re a reminder of the good that goes on in the world every day that we don’t highlight nearly enough on this blog. Ryan Baldera knew he had a breathing problem, he knew he had a wife and child at home, but the second he saw something dangerous brewing at Buffalo Wild Wings he put his life on the line to save the lives of others.

Let’s be clear – this man died a hero. His son, sadly, will never remember him. His family will no doubt tell him about what a good guy his old man was, and I’m sure it’s going to be hard on the kid growing up without him there. But one day that kid is gonna be old enough to Google, so it’s important that one of the first keywords that pops up is “hero.” Because that’s what his father was. A hero.

 

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46 Comment(s)
  • randiguy2006
    Big deal
    November 11, 2019 at 10:40 am

    Maybe he should have gone to college instead.

    Or blogged from his basement.

    Lesson learned I guess

  • Patrick Keaton
    November 10, 2019 at 4:48 pm

    To start with, Super 8 is not a floor cleaner, it is a sanitizer that is highly concentrated that about an ounce, when mixed with 10 gallons of water, sanitizes dishes after they are washed. Super 8 costs $100 for a 2 1/2 gallon container, so it would not be cost effective to use as a floor cleaner anyway. Does Buffalo Wild Wings tell the Franchisees to use this product as a floor cleaner ? The reaction between the 2 substance would have never happened if Super 8 was not directly put on the floor on purpose to clean the floor. They should have mopped the floor with 7 liters of water mixed with 300ml of strong bleach or if they were instructed, the Super 8. I am thinking the Super 8 was poured on the floor directly to cause the extreme reaction with the other cleaning agent.

    • DudeRanchStripClub
      November 11, 2019 at 8:42 am

      I swear, if you EVER, EVER bring math to this blog comments section again I will blow you ass wide open with about 30gb of hard drive and 2 hundred thousand miligrams of “blow it out your ass”.

      You disgust me. **spit**

  • T. Franze
    November 10, 2019 at 1:14 pm

    I am Thomas Franze. Ghost cowboy gets $100. Assholes.

  • Harold Chase
    November 10, 2019 at 8:48 am

    My name is Harold Chase. Ghost Cowboy wins my $100 for week 1. Congratulations.

    • Mark Morrisey
      November 10, 2019 at 10:21 am

      100 to Ghost Cowboy. Excellente.

  • ur voice(bad) life
    November 9, 2019 at 6:25 pm

    The Ghost Cowboy says it. He bows. That is all folks. He farts. Ye mad as hell. He is Gone. Never to return.

  • cummeth in me
    November 9, 2019 at 6:07 pm

    The Ghost cowboy says it. Ye longs for the giant black cock deep into his ass Sayeth you will my big black buck

  • henomaddahenomadda life
    November 9, 2019 at 11:31 am

    The Ghost Cowboy says it. Then adds Swing Badda as he trots off like he’s rounding 1st base. Ye feel like ye at a ballpark. Ye caint help but test the air as ye sniff hesitantly. All clear ye declare. The Ghost Cowboy left.

    • DON'T LEAVE
      November 9, 2019 at 3:14 pm

      Please don’t leave. We are reading ghost posts over and over keepem coming. LOL.

  • The Wendy's Manager
    November 9, 2019 at 11:20 am

    BWW are in no way responsible for this mans death.
    They are responsible for hiring someone who is so incompetent that they can’t even safely mop a fucking floor.
    This reminds me of the Wendy’s manager who said he can’t find anyone to hire because all of the applicants are idiots and he was instantly fired and ostracized for his comments. That manager by not hiring morons probably saved lives.

    • Dr. Ed
      November 9, 2019 at 3:58 pm

      BWW is responsible everything any one of its employees does, it’s called “respondeat superior.”

      You don’t mop a floor with a squeegee, you push liquids with it, and that’s what makes me think this was a spill. And BWW is responsible for not ensuring that there was an established (practiced) HazMat protocol — one involving pulling the fire alarm…

      Yes fire alarm — firefighters are trained (and equipped) to deal with HazMat spills — restaurant managers aren’t. BWW has 8 injured customers, and those lawsuits aren’t limited by worker’s comp…

  • Cama life
    November 9, 2019 at 10:34 am

    The Ghost Cowboy says it. He claps. Ye screen blinks. He goes.

  • Common Sense
    November 9, 2019 at 10:14 am

    Build the wall.
    MAGA 2020

  • Liawatha
    November 9, 2019 at 10:12 am

    Unfortunately all of the fast food restaurant employees have a GED or less education and most can’t read English.
    With free college for all Jose here would have been able to read the instructions and warnings on the bottle’s label. I’m going to use this incident as part of my platform.

    • Dr. Ed
      November 9, 2019 at 10:31 am

      The label warnings are printed in Spanish as well.

  • Chilly life
    November 9, 2019 at 10:09 am

    The Ghost Cowboys says it. It’s more of a whisper. Somehow that doesn’t warm ye chill.

  • Spic Tormentor
    November 9, 2019 at 10:05 am

    Well, that’s one way to make your floors Spic and span!

    • Spic Tormentor
      November 9, 2019 at 10:45 am

      Looks like I have one of those faggot imposters now too

  • ncfoothillbilly
    November 9, 2019 at 9:44 am

    I witnessed a similar situation when I was at Camp Geiger many years ago. Some dummy decided to mix some cleaning chemicals for our usual Thursday ‘field day’ and things started bubbling. It wasnt long before several people had to be taken, by ambulance, to the ER. This is why they put instructions on chemical bottles. RIP

    • Mr. Safety
      November 9, 2019 at 10:00 am

      Your right NC, unfortunately this happens all too often, especially in households. Never fucking ever mix chemicals together! Think extent of condition, all restaurants need to use this tragedy as a learning opportunity…

  • Dr. Ed
    November 9, 2019 at 9:09 am

    This is not just a tragedy, it’s criminal negligence on the part of corporate.

    if they are going to use chemicals which the average person can’t even buy, they have an obligation to not only properly train all of their employees but to also have rigid spill procedures, including immediate evacuation.

    The interesting question is if BWW faces criminal charges — not just an OSHA fine, but criminal charges.

  • Buffalo Wing Bob
    November 9, 2019 at 8:55 am

    Yes on one hand this is terrible for the family but on the bright side maybe BWW will name their newest wing after him the ‘Baldera’ wing that is dipped in caustic chemicals with the catchy slogan ‘bet you can eat only one!’.

    • Dave Lind
      Dave
      November 9, 2019 at 9:15 am

      BWB….you are an absolute idiot…….. FUCK YOU, you heartless shithead. I hope you die a slow painful death

      • Dr. Ed
        November 9, 2019 at 10:45 am

        With permission of (and perhaps payment to) his wife, it would make a quite effective safety poster, something that might actually get through to young men.

  • Independent Thinker
    November 9, 2019 at 8:28 am

    Let’s also hope that OSHA figures out a way to ensure that a accident, such as this, never happens again. A lot of commercial cleaners are acid based. Adding water to acid will give off toxic fumes.

    I really hope the company does the right thing here. His wife and child are going to need money to get through this. The public now has their eyes on this company. Doing the right thing will bring it the best publicity of all. Doing the wrong thing could result in a huge loss of business.

    • Mr. Safety
      November 9, 2019 at 9:43 am

      The only thing OSHA is going to do is fine them. Probably for “hazard awareness”. Use of material safety data sheets, labeling, training, observation programs and more. I would do the root cause analysis on this for free.

      • Dr. Ed
        November 9, 2019 at 10:52 am

        Yes, but if OSHA (or the Burlington Fire Dept) starts going around to all the other places and starts writing fines and/or threatens to yank licenses (which the town can do), corporate will start taking this stuff seriously.

    • Dr. Ed
      November 9, 2019 at 10:57 am

      Adding Sodium Hypochloriate (Chlorine Bleach) to any acid (including food-grade vinegar) will release free Chlorine gas. That’s what happened here.

  • Chalikelike life
    November 9, 2019 at 8:13 am

    The Ghost Cowboy says it. He sneezes wetly as he turns it into a smile. His hip bumps ye screen as he departs. It closes ye screen some. Ye hear him giggle as ye readjust ye screen.

    • Spic Tormentor
      November 9, 2019 at 8:53 am

      Shut the fuck up you stupid faggot

      • YA life
        November 9, 2019 at 9:13 am

        The Ghost Cowboy says it. A sideways grin on his lips. Just looking at ye. Ye can hear a gurgling in the pit of his belly. Ye hear it enter his throat and he startles ye as his hip brushes ye face as he abruptly gets up and leaves. Laughing. Ye head is foggy. He had switched the trajectory of his gaseous discharge. Involuntary twitching of ye nose sets in. His gift. The wind blows once again. Ye lose God’s coin toss. Twisted mist engulfs you.

  • what did they life
    November 9, 2019 at 7:53 am

    The Ghost Cowboy says it. He releases a wakening fart as he crouches down next to ye. He looks at the screen. Then he looks at ye. Grins. He duck walks out. His grin widens. Ye close ye eyes.

    • John Mercanty
      November 9, 2019 at 8:08 am

      you worthless pile of steaming dog poo

  • WeRFucked
    November 9, 2019 at 7:40 am

    And finally a GFM featured on Turtleboy that actually deserves a donation.

    The true purpose of GFM is situations like this. I’ve given a small token. I’ll skip Dunkins’ for a few days.

    Do it. $5, $10? Please.

  • Dwtw34
    November 9, 2019 at 7:26 am

    God bless this man and his beautiful family. A real hero. Only stuff like this happens to nice people and never happens to a lunger like Abrams or that other dick head he is usually with. R.I.P

  • Sowwee life
    November 9, 2019 at 7:26 am

    The Ghost Cowboy says it. Ye blush.

    • ghost cowboy swallows man juice
      November 9, 2019 at 8:11 am

      you’re the cowboy from brokeback mountain

      • Dick GoZinya
        November 9, 2019 at 9:36 am

        I give up. Who/what the fuck is a ghost cowboy?

        • WeRFucked
          November 9, 2019 at 12:27 pm

          Any man with a below averaged sized penis,

  • Independent Thinker
    November 9, 2019 at 5:43 am

    Yes, a great man, and a true hero.

  • You better step up, BWW
    November 9, 2019 at 5:12 am

    Sad and tragic. Prayers for his loved ones.
    Not a big fan of the Corporation but let’s see how they step up (or don’t).
    His rapid response, in spite of a very great personal risk, not only saved lives but probably saved the company millions of dollars.
    That wife and child shouldn’t have to want for a thing from now on, with the obvious exception of the courageous husband.

  • Alec
    November 9, 2019 at 12:20 am

    My boyfriend works for Servpro, wmata company who cleans up mold, fire, hazardous spills etc. He’s usually home by 4 on Fridays. He walked in at 7pm (we live in Southern NH) and was a total mess. He was so upset and angry. He (& I , still) work in restaurants going on 12 years. I even worked at Buffalo Wild Wings in Brockton!! He said someone spilled ( I forget the exact chemical names) and didn’t clean it up & then by chance a second chemical spilled in the same spot sparking a hazardous reaction. The chefs took off & the manager did his under paid job & tried to clean it up, combined with asthma & died.. Tragic is not even the word!! RIP!!!

    • Dr. Ed
      November 9, 2019 at 8:47 am

      This is exactly what I thought happened – the “floor washing” never made sense and “squeegeeing out the door” strikes me as a desperate attempt to get rid of it.

      In reality, it made the situation much worse because it enabled the Chlorine gas to disperse much more quickly — but to know that, you have to have some HazMat training. Likewise to know that instead you should pull the fire alarm and EVACUATE as quickly as possible. Get Everyone OUT of there!!!

      This is where I blame corporate — not training their managers to do this AND supporting them when they do it.

  • Said Everyone
    November 8, 2019 at 11:30 pm

    God bless this man. He went to work to support his family and lost his life to a tragic accident. God bless him and his family. I hope the company supports his family.

  • Daniel Sullivan
    Sprinkle Pig
    November 8, 2019 at 11:20 pm

    This is such an awful tragedy. My heart breaks for his wife and young son as well as the rest of his family. Sometimes I look at my 2 1/2 year daughter and I think about how horrible it would to not watch her grow up and see her turn into an amazing young woman. Unfortunately for this guy he won’t get to see that and that is just a gut wrenching feeling. Saying a pray for his family especially wife and son. Very sad!

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