The result?  Mierendorf suffered severe chemical injuries after his hands were injected with R-22 while trying to protect customers by trying to stop the refrigerant during the incident, according to Mierendorf’s attorney Jon Marko.   

Since the incident, Mierendorf has undergone 25 surgeries to retain just a semblance of what his hands once were.  

"Kroger had a ticking time bomb in its store at Bloomfield Township, waiting to blow. Unfortunately, it blew up on Brian, and he lost his hands trying to save other people in the store from toxic chemicals being sprayed out in the middle of the day in front of the meat department," Marko said in a news release. "At trial, Kroger's defense was to blame Brian for his heroic actions. The verdict sends a clear message to Kroger that Brian's actions should be commended, and that Brian literally gave up his hands in the line of duty at the expense of himself and his family is priceless." 

According to the complaint, the refrigerant was pouring out at such a high rate that Mierendorf could hardly breathe as he worked to free his hand from the pipe, resulting in severe chemical burns and the loss of the majority of Mierendorf’s fingers.  

The complaint stated that Kroger controlled both the property and the refrigeration line, yet failed to warn Mierendorf of the “dangerous condition,” neglected to inspect the refrigeration lines before requesting maintenance, did not install shutoff valves within a reasonable distance of the work area, and failed to properly hire, train, supervise, and retain employees responsible for maintaining the refrigeration system. 

In his statement, Marko noted that Kroger failed to provide any maintenance, repair, or inspection records for the refrigeration system during the trial, despite being legally required to do so. He added that the company only produced a partial incident report, completed more than two years after the incident.  Both federal law and local policies mandated that Kroger maintain and document all of this information.