Troy — Troy police found grounding straps that patients are supposed to wear for safety during treatment in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber sitting in what appeared to be a junk drawer at a medical facility after an explosion that left a 5-year-old boy dead, a detective said on Tuesday.

Testifying during the fourth day of a preliminary exam in Troy's 52-4 District Court, Troy Police Detective Ryan Whiteside said it did not appear that Thomas Cooper was wearing a grounding strap when he went into the chamber on the day of his death, Jan. 31.

Prosecutors have alleged that the Oxford Center, a medical facility where Thomas, 5, was receiving treatment in a hyperbaric chamber when it exploded, killing him, did not use a grounding strap during their treatments.

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