Former Southold Town councilman John Romanelli, an owner of Burt’s Reliable Fuel in Southold, is in critical condition at Stony Brook University Medical Center after he was engulfed in flames in an accident at his business early Thursday morning, according to Southold Town Police.
Romanelli, 47, was airlifted to Stony Brook due to the serious nature of the burns he sustained in the accident, police said.
The accident occurred when a trucking company was attempting to unload bio-fuel into a tank at Romanelli’s Youngs Avenue, Southold business. A connection valve that distributes the fuel from the truck to the tank was frozen, police said. Romanelli attempted to thaw the valve with a torch, according to a police report. As he did so, the rubber pipe connecting the valve to the truck came loose, causing the fuel from the truck to spray onto Romanelli, who caught fire as a result.
Employees at Romanelli’s company used fire extinguishers to douse the flames burning Romanelli’s clothing, police said.
Romanelli was treated at the scene by Southold Fire Department EMTs before being airlifted to Stony Brook, where he was listed in critical condition.
Biofuel is made from renewable sources, such as soybean oil, which are cleaner-burning and reduce greenhouse gases and carbon emissions. Burt’s Reliable, founded in 1917, converted its entire operation to the sale and distribution of biofuel blend products in 2006.
First elected in 1997, Romanelli served two four-year terms on the Southold Town Board. He mounted an unsuccessful challenge for supervisor against incumbent Josh Horton in 2003.
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