Burned refinery worker released after 6 months in hospital

SAVANNAH — A worker who was severely burned in the Imperial Sugar refinery explosion near Savannah is heading home after being treated for more than six months at an Augusta hospital.

A spokeswoman for the Joseph M. Still Burn Center says 33-year-old Paul Seckinger was released Friday. Seckinger suffered burns over 80 percent of his body in the Feb. 7 explosion. He lives in Springfield, northwest of Savannah.

Burn center spokeswoman Beth Frits said two refinery workers remain hospitalized in critical condition. Seckinger was the 13th refinery worker released from the hospital since the explosion.

The February blast killed 13 people. The federal Occupational Health and Safety Administration last month proposed $8.7 million in fines against Texas-based Imperial Sugar.