Two burned in gasoline fumes blast on shrimp..

Great Salt Lake • Spark in engine compartment ignited flash fire.

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Two fishermen were burned in a flash fire Monday morning as they prepared to go out on the Great Salt Lake in search of brine shrimp.

Tooele County sheriff's Deputy Keith Borders said the two men were working inside the boat's engine compartment making unspecified repairs when the fire occurred about 6:45 a.m. They were afloat on the lake offshore from Stansbury Island at the time.

"Gas fumes had built up and one of them made a spark with a wire and it literally blew up in their faces, a big fire ball," Borders said.

A 47-year-old Tooele man suffered second- and third-degree burns to his face, hands, chest, back and legs. He was flown to University of Utah Burn Unit in Salt Lake City in serious condition. A 29-year-old man was treated at the scene for minor burns to his neck and scalp and released.

Borders said the boat itself sustained only minor damage.

Two burned in gasoline fumes blast on shrimp boat