A teenage apprentice welder who was turned into a 'human fireball' in a workplace accident has described how he pleaded with nurses to let him die. Dwayne Bell was just 17 when he suffered horrific burns at a steel yard in Wigan, Greater Manchester, in March 2021.
Mr Bell, now 22, was carrying out a routine rubbish-burning task when a massive fireball engulfed him, scorching his face, chin and hands. The blast was so intense it melted part of his nose and ear, leaving him with third-degree burns. He was airlifted to hospital and placed in an induced coma for a week.
Speaking out to warn other young apprentices, Mr Bell said: 'I shouldn't be here talking to you. I am lucky to be alive. It was so hot I feared I was going to be blinded.' He recalled waking up in intensive care in 'indescribable pain' and begging nurses to 'turn the machines off and let me go'.
Mr Bell, from Ashton-in-Makerfield, had just started his career at Qualfab Steel Ltd when the incident occurred. He claims he was directed to burn general waste without adequate supervision or training. 'I was just a kid, doing what I was told,' he said. 'This was an accident waiting to happen.'
After three weeks in hospital, Mr Bell returned home, where his mother had to help him with dressing and cutting up food. He said: 'I'm living in a body that feels like a prison. This shouldn't have happened. I wasn't supervised and no trainee should ever be put in that position.'
