Standfirst: Michael Donaldson talks to Jason Bathgate and Andrew Childs about the horrific accident that left them with severe burns.
Pics: Andrew Childs / Jason Bathgate
Brewer Andrew Childs would never, ever again want to go through the ordeal of being burnt by boiling wort again but even he can see the upside of the horrific accident that hospitalised him and fellow brewer Jason Bathgate in September last year.
Childs, the big man behind Behemoth Brewing with the upbeat approach to life, can see the silver lining to an accident which generated national news. “Obviously the publicity didn’t hurt so there’s a silver lining to it and I’ll take the ups: we’ve tripled sales in the past three or four months,” he said in January.
Childs and Bathgate, an American who has been in New Zealand for six years, were in Middlemore hospital for five and seven weeks respectively and both face a long period of rehabilitation, including wearing compression suits 23 hours a day to help the scars heal, physical therapy and counselling.
Bathgate in particular is struggling with both the physical pain and the psychological impact of being blasted by boiling wort when a full kettle literally exploded over him – severely burning his chest and arms.
The pair were working at Soren Eriksen’s 8 Wired brewery in Warkworth, where Bathgate is an assistant brewer and Childs was making a beer made under contract.
“The pain and the scarring right now are really hard to deal with,” Bathgate said. “It has been so incredibly debilitating and every day I struggle with it.”
His left arm has lost quite a lot of mobility as the scars restrict the joints and he’s not yet ready to come back to work – though he thinks about brewing “every day”.
He’s been back to the brewery a couple of times to meet Eriksen and his wife Monique, who poured ice cold water over the burned pair until they could be airlifted to hospital.
There’s a return-to-work plan in place for Bathgate but he admitted it was “psychologically challenging” to think about returning to the scene of the accident. “I think I’m going to need a bit of therapy to deal with that – even going back there to visit is quite surreal.”
Childs has been able to get back brewing sooner but admitted his first visit to 8 Wired was a little unsettling. “Going back there and just getting the smell at the end of the boil reminded straight away of being on the ground as Soren and Monique poured iced water on me. The smell took me straight back there. It wasn’t a horrible thing – but it was just a bit messed up.”
The pair had been brewing Childs’ double IPA, In Ya Face, when the accident happened.
It was assumed by some that the brew was named as the result of the accident – that being typical of Childs’ sense of humour – but the name, as blackly appropriate as it is was there before the accident.
“It was always going to be called In Ya Face because the American hops are exactly that. I like calling a beer what it is – it just fun,” Childs said.
Bathgate said the pair would always share a bond – “we’re the Burn Borhters” – because of the accident and praised Childs for his positive attitude through the traumatic weeks in hospital.
“Andrew’s positive attitude and spirit are amazing,” Bathgate says. “He’s so determined.”
Bathgate came into the brewing industry after 20 years in the restaurant business. He started as home brewer in Nelson before taking on an apprenticeship with Eriksen when 8 Wired was located in Blenheim. With his partner Monica Mead, he followed Eriksen north to Warkworth and now lives in idyllic Pakiri, north of Auckland.
He is in awe of his new industry for the support that has come his way in the wake of his “nightmare” experience.
“The support from the brewing industry has just been mind-blowing,” Bathgate said. “I’m dumb-founded by the generosity and support.”
