Restaurant owner suffers burns on 60 percent of his body following food truck explosion

SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV/Gray News) - A restaurant owner in Tennessee is recovering after his food truck exploded with him and his daughter’s boyfriend inside.

“That man is covered by the grace of God, because the way that food truck looked, both of them shouldn’t even be here right now, but they are,” Floyd Thomas’ wife, Cierra Brown, said.

According to Brown, Thomas went to the truck with their daughter’s boyfriend, Tyshawn, last Saturday morning to prepare everything for the grand reopening of their Morning Glory Catfish Food Truck. 

The couple had just moved the truck, an extension of their Unionville restaurant, from Murfreesboro to their hometown of Shelbyville due to customer demand.

“They went shopping to get the stuff that they needed to get, got back to the food truck, got ready to cook,” Brown said. “He flicked the torch lighter. As soon as it sparked, the whole truck blew up.”

Thomas was airlifted to Vanderbilt Hospital with burns covering 40 to 60 percent of his body. Tyshawn had severe burns on his hands and face.

“It’s really hard because he’s not a person who’s used to just lying around and having to have others take care of him,” Brown said. “He’s used to having to take care of other people and getting things done himself.”

Thomas and Brown know how to navigate tragedy because they’ve done it before. Almost a year before the explosion, they lost their home to a house fire. Brown says they’ve found resilience in their faith.

“I put on some Christian music for him, and even though he was hurting, he still lifted his arms and was praising Jesus,” she said. “I’m in good spirits because he’s in good spirits. Even though he’s going through a tough time, he never shows that on his face. Not at all. You would never know it.”

Brown and Thomas are planning to reopen the Unionville restaurant on May 30. They’ve also started a Give Send Go page to help pay for Floyd’s medical expenses.

“We’re just asking for prayers and your thoughts and come on, eat and celebrate with us at the restaurant,” Brown said.

Brown says Thomas will likely have to be in the hospital for a few months, but not even a week after the accident, he’s already itching to get back to serving up his classic catfish dinners.

“He already said he has to get back to the community,” Brown said. “Every day is a new day. Every single day, it gets better. Like my husband always says, it gets worse before it gets better, but it does get better.”

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