The December Vashon Energy fire was caused by an employee repairing a hose nozzle inside the building and releasing propane in the process, according to a King County fire investigation report released last week.

The report states that fire investigator Charles Andrews arrived at the fire on Dec. 2 while responders were still present. A Vashon Island Fire & Rescue (VIFR) paramedic relayed to him that the injured employee — later identified as Owen Dailey — had told her that he had been changing a nozzle on the delivery truck hose because it had not been working properly. He was working at a workbench in the garage, realized there had been a propane release and had sent another employee to get a fan. An explosion occurred then, and quickly after it, he moved the two propane trucks away from the building, although he had been badly burned.

The report states that propane vapor likely ignited when it came into contact with a furnace pilot light.

Jim Ellifritt, the area director for AmeriGas, which owns Vashon Energy, had come to the fire, the report states.

“Ellifritt told me there was no record of a problem with the nozzle on the truck. He also told me that work on the nozzle should not have been done in the building,” Andrews wrote.

An additional fire investigator interviewed Dailey, who had been flown to Harborview Medical Center. The contents of that interview were not made public.

The investigator also states that he showed Ellifritt the area of the work bench and pointed out a hose fitting still in the vise and two nozzles on the floor next to the vise. He also noted two propane trucks nearby: One had no fitting or nozzle at the end of the hose and the other had a fitting, but no nozzle.

Andrews noted that the work area of the building needed to be left in place for any further investigation needed.

At VIFR, Assistant Chief Bob Larsen reviewed the report as well and noted that investigators deemed the cause accidental.

“Any further information needs to wait until the issuance of the Labor and Industries (L&I) investigation,” he said.

That investigation opened the week following the fire and is focused on workplace safety regulations and what AmeriGas was doing to ensure those regulations were followed, according to Elaine Fischer of the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries.

That investigation is not yet complete, she said last week. While she could not yet speak to it, she noted that L&I conducted seven inspections of AmeriGas since 2011, and in most of them, there were no violations cited. The exception was in February 2014, when L&I cited the company for three general safety violations and one serious one.

There was a $400 fine. The company paid and did not appeal.

The current investigation is expected to be completed next month.