4 arrested in hyperbaric chamber fire that killed 5-year-old Royal Oak boy
Four people were arrested Monday in the death of a 5-year-old boy whose last moments were spent inside a fiery hyperbaric oxygen chamber at the Oxford Center, Troy police said.
- Troy police said four people were arrested Monday in connection with a fire inside a hyperbaric oxygen chamber in Troy that killed a 5-year-old boy.
- They will be arraigned Tuesday in 52-4 District Court in Troy, said Lt. Ben Hancock of the Troy Police Department.
- The child who died in the Jan. 31 hyperbaric oxygen chamber fire was 5-year-old Thomas Cooper, of Royal Oak. He was trapped in the chamber when it caught fire, the family's attorney says.
Four people were arrested Monday in the death of a 5-year-old boy whose last moments were spent inside a fiery hyperbaric oxygen chamber at the Oxford Center in Troy, police said.
Lt. Ben Hancock of the Troy Police Department would not release the names of the people arrested, nor would he provide any other details about the charges against them because they have yet to be arraigned.
Their arraignment is set for Tuesday in 52-4 District Court in Troy, Hancock said Monday evening.
The parents of Thomas Cooper, 5, of Royal Oak, were unaware of the danger their son faced when he climbed inside the hyperbaric oxygen chamber on the morning of Jan. 31, said James Harrington, managing partner at Fieger Law, which is representing the family.
The boy, described by his family as curious, energetic and thoughtful, was in the midst of his 36th hyperbaric oxygen therapy treatment at the center when the pressurized chamber burst into flames. Thomas was trapped inside, Harrington said in a February interview with the Free Press.
The Oxford Center issued a statement to the Free Press late Monday, calling the timing of the charges "surprising."
"After cooperating with multiple investigations starting immediately after the tragic accident in January, we are disappointed to see charges filed," the statement said.
"The timing of these charges is surprising, as the typical protocol after a fire-related accident has not yet been completed. There are still outstanding questions about how this occurred. Yet, the Attorney General’s office proceeded to pursue charges without those answers."
The statement said the facility's "highest priority every day is the safety and wellbeing of the children and families."
A call and email messages to the Michigan Department of Attorney General Dana Nessel's Office were not immediately returned Monday evening.
Thomas' mother, Annie Cooper, was burned as she raced from a nearby waiting area to his side, but couldn't get Thomas out of the sealed, tube-like chamber, Harrington said.
She was left to watch in horror as her son burned to death inside the chamber, which was full of pure oxygen. Annie Cooper suffered third-degree burns to her arms, but the psychological trauma was far worse, Harrington said.
"It's literally the worst thing that any parent could (experience)," he said. "And poor Thomas ... his last moments of life were being engulfed in flames and perishing in front of his mother. He was certainly aware of what was going on.
"An event like this should never, ever, ever happen," he said, "and it did. And the only reason that something like that happens is either equipment malfunction or operator user error by the staff or a combination of both.
"These are potentially extremely dangerous treatments, as we know from what happened with Thomas. And where's the oversight? Where's the regulatory board that's looking at this to make sure that these machines are being serviced according to manufacturer specs, and a manufacturer has a contract to service these?"
The ordinary air people breathe contains about 21% oxygen, while the air inside a hyperbaric chamber is made up of 100% pure oxygen in a pressurized environment.
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, that increased air pressure helps a person's lungs get more oxygen to tissues throughout the body, which can help it heal and fight certain infections.
Treatments have been shown to relieve decompression sickness for scuba divers, to help firefighters, miners and others recover from carbon monoxide poisoning, to improve the success of skin grafts and to speed up the healing of infections, such as diabetic foot ulcers and gangrene, and in treatment of crush injuries.
The FDA also has authorized hyperbaric oxygen therapy to treat severe anemia, radiation injuries and some types of complete and sudden hearing and vision loss.
But the Oxford Center is among the alternative medical centers or medical spas that, in recent years, have offered hyperbaric oxygen therapy for conditions that are not FDA approved, such as autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, sports injuries, COVID-19, depression, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, strokes, migraine headaches and as an anti-aging treatment.
Thomas was being treated for ADHD and sleep apnea, Harrington said. Those treatments also are not FDA approved.
Contact Kristen Shamus: kshamus@freepress.com. Subscribe to the Free Press.