Silver Lake Daily Newsletter.com

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Keegan Bayne was 19:
Investigators still looking for answers in Lyndonville tanker death of Bayne

Keegan Bayne

• By SCOTT DESMIT - sdesmit@batavianews.com

ALBION — Investigators are still trying to determine how a young Lyndonville man died while cleaning a tank at a trucking business Tuesday. Keegan Bayne, 19, died and Chase Johnson, 35, also of Lyndonville, suffered severe injuries when both were overcome and were found inside a semi-tanker about 11 a.m.

Johnson was taken by Mercy Flight to Strong Memorial Hospital, where he remained in guarded condition in intensive care Friday afternoon, a hospital spokesman said. Orleans Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Jeffrey Gifaldi said an autopsy was performed on Bayne Thursday with “nothing unusual” found.

“We’re going to have to wait for toxicology tests to be complete before we can figure out what happened,” he said. The two were cleaning the inside of a tank that is used to haul Lignin, an alcohol-based compound used to mix with stone for paving roads. Lignin acts as a type of glue to harden the paving mix.

Gifaldi said the two men were “just rinsing out the tank with water” and it remains unclear whether any Lignin residue could have created fumes or whether there was a lack of oxygen in the tank. He said the state Department of Environmental Conservation and OSHA are assisting in the investigation.

Funeral services for Bayne have been set, with calling hours from 1 to 4 and 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at Lyndonville Presbyterian Church. Service and burial will be private. Bayne was a graduate of Lyndonville High School, where he excelled in the Advance Manufacturing and Engineering program. He graduated with honors from Machine Tool Technology at Alfred State.

Survivors include his parents, Gary Leo and Faith Anne Bayne and siblings Masson and Garren.

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