Explosion in Beauxville: "I wanted to die"

Almost two years after an explosion at the Bois Ouvré factory in Beauceville threw it several meters into the air and burned it to the third degree, a wonder man is struggling to adjust to his new life.

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“Every day I look in the mirror and see everything I’ve lost and it won’t come back. It’s hard. I still tell myself I’d rather die”, breathes Oliver Marchand, a year and a half after the tragedy.

On September 20, 2021, a 36-year-old roofer was unsteady on the roof of the Bois Ovre factory in Beauceville when an explosion threw him twenty feet into the air.

Marc Vallières/QMI Agency

Three people died and five were injured in this incident which took place one and a half years ago.

After falling about two stories, he fell back to the ground in the middle of the fire.

“We’re going to die!” When I think about it, it sends shivers down my spine,” he said Register.

Completely naked under the adrenalin – his clothes engulfed in flames – Mr. Marchand climbed out of the building through a hole in a collapsed wall before losing consciousness.

A new life

He woke up from the coma just three months later, 60 pounds lighter and a long rehab ahead of him.

With third-degree burns over 70% of his body, he had to receive numerous skin grafts and had to have the fingers of his left hand amputated. When he hit the ground, all his ribs were broken and his knees were broken.

Jeremy Bernier

Olivier Marchand was in a coma for three months after the fire.

“The hardest thing wasn’t the pain. It was to see my hands and face completely destroyed and unable to function normally,” says Oliver Marchand.

“My body image is the biggest grief I’ve had to do,” she continues.

Beat the predictions

Although doctors cannot guarantee that he will regain all his motor skills, the 30-year-old insists that he has made a lot of progress since the incident.

He is now able to walk and play sports, which pushes him forward. The company he worked for offered him a position as an evaluator because he couldn’t stay in the sun for long.

Presented by Olivier Marchant

Oliver Marchant, a few months before the tragic event that claimed his life.

“In terms of recovery, I’m beating predictions. I’m a lot further along than I should be, but that’s not proof of everything,” Mr. Marchant says, thanking his ex-wife, his family and the professionals who have supported him over the past year.