The contract worker injured in a fire at an Extraction Oil and Gas facility in Windsor on December 22 remains in the hospital with third degree burns to his hands and second degree burns to his face.
But doctors removed his intubation tubes on Wednesday allowing him to speak with his wife for the first time since the fire.
“He told me that he loved me and asked if I was ok. And if our kids were OK,” said Rachel Darrah. “I said don't worry about me, are you OK?”
Rachel and her husband Houston Darrah have two young kids who spent Christmas without their father. Rachel has spent much of the holiday by her husband's side.
“I did not spend Christmas with my kids the way I would like to. I was in the hospital with him. And I knew that was hard on him if he was even aware of the situation,” she says.
Authorities say the fire is still under investigation. Houston isn't at a point where he can carry on a conversation and Rachel isn't even sure if he knows how the fire started.
The fire broke out before 9 p.m. on December 22. A flash could be seen from miles away. Flames burned for hours. Rachel says Houston called her to tell her there had been an accident but the paramedics then took over.
She hadn't had a conversation with him until Tuesday.
