Shane W Potter

BUFFALO TWP — A longtime resident of the township died in a steel plant explosion on Wednesday, Jan. 22, in Westmoreland County, according to his obituary.

Daniel R. Vakulick, 20, of Tarentum, was a longtime resident of Buffalo Township and a 2023 graduate of Freeport Area School District. According to his obituary, he was a maintenance technician for two years at Braeburn Alloy’s Steel in Lower Burrell, where he died in a furnace explosion.

An explosion was reported at the plant shortly before noon on Wednesday. Three were injured and two were transported to the hospital in critical condition, according to Pittsburgh media reports.

A third person with non-life-threatening injuries was also taken to an area hospital via ambulance, Lower Burrell No. 3 Fire Company Chief Brennan Sites said.

The Allegheny County medical examiner’s office report stated Vakulick died shorty after 12:45 p.m. on Wednesday. The cause and manner of death have not been released.

Pittsburgh media outlets have indicated Vakulick was one of the three injured and had been transported to Allegheny Valley Hospital.

The cause of the explosion that rang out around noon is still under investigation.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the incident and has six months to issue citations, according to an OSHA spokesperson.

Braeburn Alloy’s parent company, Electralloy, based in Oil City, is also investigating the incident.

An update is not yet available on the condition of the other two injured.