The day after a sperm bank was cited following the death of a Georgia deputy in Augusta, state officials again flagged the business allegedly for using a liquid nitrogen tank the state fire commissioner had not inspected.
Xytex Sperm Bank in Augusta was issued a cease and desist order for one liquid nitrogen tank Tuesday following the death of Richmond County sheriff’s Sgt. Greg Meagher, who is believed to have inhaled the substance.
According to authorities, Meagher, 57, died Sunday trying to save sperm bank employee Anita Wylds after the tank holding about 17,440 gallons of liquid nitrogen leaked.
But when state investigators responding to the deputy’s death determined one tank could no longer be used, they were told another tank on the premise also would not be used, said Glenn Allen, a spokesman for Georgia Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner Ralph Hudgens.
According to the Augusta Chronicle, that did not stop Xytex from issuing a statement Wednesday afternoon telling “clients that all privately stored tissue is safe, and our storage facilities are fully operational.”
“While the State Fire Marshal has issued a cessation order on one piece of equipment, Xytex’s storage capabilities are fully functional and we will continue to cooperate in the ongoing investigation,” the company said in the statement.
Allen said the state was not notified of the restoration to services.
“That tank had not been inspected by us and was not permitted to be in use,” he said.
Investigators plan to return to the facility Thursday to continue inspections.
The process of getting nitrogen tanks approved for sperm banks involves several agencies.
While Xytex uses the liquid nitrogen tanks to freeze specimens, “it’s not Xytex’s responsibility to get these tanks inspected,” Allen said.
AirGas Inc. leases the tanks and the nitrogen to the company, and the state inspects them, then permits the installation.
Although the tank that leaked was installed more than a month before the state approved its installation Jan. 26, Xytex had the required state approval when the leak occurred.
The company plans to bring in smaller tanks, which the FDA regulates instead of the state, Allen said.
The cause and manner of the deputy’s death has not been determined, Richmond County Coroner Mark Bowen said.
Wylds is listed in critical condition at the Joseph M. Still Burn Center at Doctors Hospital, the Chronicle reported.
— Staff writer Raisa Habersham contributed to this article.
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