NEW ALBANY, Ind. -- One person was seriously injured Monday evening in a house explosion in New Albany.
New Albany Fire Department Battalion Chief Joe Squier said the explosion in the 1900 block of McDonald Avenue was probably caused by a natural gas leak. Firefighters were dispatched at 6:21 p.m., and the first company arrived on scene at 6:23 p.m. with heavy fire coming from the back of the house.
Squier said the back of the house suffered major damage, and the roof blew off a closed-in porch in the rear of the residence. There was a debris field of about 50 feet.
The homeowner told firefighters her grandson walked out the back of the house to smoke a cigarette and returned just before the explosion, according to Squier. The grandson was rushed to University Hospital in Louisville with severe injuries.
Squier said the original report was that the victim had second-degree burns all over the front of his body. The victim's name has not yet been released, and investigators are hoping to speak to him later today.
Squier said there is nothing suspicious about the explosion. He said the fire appeared to be coming from the gas stove, but the investigation is ongoing.
"Everything is consistent with an explosion from natural gas," Squier said. "My question is where did the gas leak originate."
Squier said this is the third residential explosion in New Albany since early November. At least two of those were caused by natural gas leaks, and foul play is not believed to be a factor in any of them.
"People just need to be aware of odors in the house and have their gas utilities serviced on a regular basis, especially their furnaces," Squier said.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
