SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (AP) — A food processor being tested for manufacturing guacamole exploded, killing the former mayor of Rensselaer and injuring two others, authorities said.
Businessman Joseph Kapp, 67, died at a local hospital after the explosion Wednesday morning at Innovative Test Solutions, an engineering firm and test laboratory.
Schenectady Fire Department Assistant Chief Don Mareno told the Times-Union of Albany that the machine was a “high-pressure vessel.”
Two other people were sent to the hospital with less serious injuries, Mareno said.
Scott Briody, Innovative’s CEO and vice president, told the newspaper that Kapp was a client of the firm.
Kapp was the vice chairman of the Board of Trustees for Hudson Valley Community College in Troy and a mayor of Rensselaer during the 1990s.