The owner of Hilltop Service Station and Garage in the 2700 block of Hanover Pike in Manchester escaped serious injury yesterday when a 250-gallon oil tank exploded.
Glenn C. Renfro, 41, said he was standing on a ladder trying to restart the garage furnace and blower, which hang from the ceiling above the oil tank, when both ends of the metal tank blew out.
Mr. Renfro said he does not know how he got down from the ladder to stand on the concrete floor next to the burning oil. He suffered only minor smoke inhalation, rescue officials said.
The garage operator said he immediately turned off the electricity and called the Manchester Fire Department. Before fire crews arrived, Mr. Renfro and several other men, including an unidentified fire-police volunteer from Manchester, used shovels and buckets to throw snow onto the fire.
Manchester Fire Chief Steve Miller said firefighters put out the blaze with two fire extinguishers.
The explosion damaged some of the auto shop equipment and broke a window of the garage and gasoline station, which Mr. Renfro has owned for eight years.