4-19-2007

I arrived on the scene of a quiet Canby neighborhood today and it looked like a scene out of Die Hard. This average suburban home was COMPLETELY destroyed. Now, in the case of a fire, it's normal to see a broken window or a heavily damaged structure. This was totally different.

The garage was gone, just levelled. The second story had collapsed in most sections. Windows were blown out. The front door was ripped out of it's frame and crumbled on the ground.

This is the scene of an explosion.

About 11:20, Northwest Natural Gas crews were working and called 9-1-1 when they noticed a dangerous level of gas in the home. The fire department arrived to inspect when, about 11:40, the place exploded. One firefighter was literally thrown outside. One was caught inside and suffered some burns. Fire officials told me he was able to walk out under his own power (they took him to the hospital but he should be fine).

Meanwhile, neighbors were, understandably, terrified. One woman who lives three blocks away said she heard a loud bang and felt her house shake . . . she thought it might have been a traffic accident or an earthquake. Then she saw the plume of smoke down the street and ran to offer whatever help she could.

Crews had to evacuate multiple homes in the area to be sure natural gas pockets had cleared. Reportedly no one was seriously hurt but the home is considered a total loss.