Man in medically induced coma after explosion causes third-degree burns

 
IDAHO FALLS — A man is in the hospital suffering from third-degree burns to his body after what his fiancée is calling a freak accident. 

Kimberly Graybeal and her fiancé, Robert Thompson, live in Buhl near Twin Falls with their two young daughters. It was just like any other day. On April 1, the girls wanted to make a fire and have s’mores, Graybeal said. 

“He went to go start the fire and he realized he didn’t have any fire starter. So he just grabbed the gas can that we have,” she explained. “It’s not something that we expected.”

What happened next seemed like a scene out of a movie. When Thompson tried to start the fire, the gas fumes sucked into the gas can, and it exploded while he was holding it, according to a GoFundMe online. 

“His whole body went back, and his arms and his legs went out. He just freaking flew. It started him on fire! Robert was on the ground rolling, screaming for his life,” Graybeal said, crying. “He was just screaming, ‘Please help me! Please! I’m dying! Please help me.'”

Graybeal tried to take the jacket off his back and ran inside the house to grab some water. He managed to get his jacket off, and a neighbor nearby called 911 for help.

Graybeal drove Thompson as fast as she could to St. Luke’s Magic Valley Medical Center in Twin Falls. 

“The hospital told me when I took him there that if I would’ve waited for an ambulance, he would’ve died,” she said.

He wasn’t there for long and was taken by an air ambulance to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, where he has remained in a medically induced coma. He received third-degree burns to the upper half of his body, including his neck and face. Graybeal said he has had surgery to repair some of his skin. 

“With him only being 25 years old, (doctors) have high hopes for him,” Graybeal said. “Unfortunately, he will not be awake for his birthday. His birthday is on Easter.” 

He could be in the hospital for a few months and the road to recovery is expected to be long. 

“I am scared for the future. I am overwhelmed,” she said. 

This has taken a toll on Graybeal. She has driven back and forth from Buhl to Idaho Falls every week while also trying to care for her daughters. 

Thompson is the sole provider of the family. He is a United States postal carrier. Graybeal created a GoFundMe online to help with future expenses as Thompson won’t be able to work for a while. As of Monday afternoon, over $5,000 has been raised out of a $50,000 goal.

“I want to thank everybody who has prayed, who has kept us in their thoughts, who has checked on me and has given me games for my kids when I am up here (in Idaho Falls), who has given me gift baskets, and who has donated. I appreciate everything. It does not go unseen,” she said. 

Graybeal has faced some backlash with the GoFundMe and said people have thought she was scamming because the incident happened on April 1. 

“This is not fake; as much as I wish it was, I wish I could say, ‘April Fools, April Fools! It’s all a joke!’ But it’s not a joke,” she said through tears. 

EIRMC spokeswoman Coleen Niemann confirmed Thompson is in serious condition at the hospital. 

“Robert’s not the first person this has happened to, and he won’t be the last,” Graybeal added. “But I just hope people really, really pay attention and just take so much precaution in the things that they do because it literally takes a half of a second for your whole life to change.”  

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