Local fire department shares causes, tips about home explosions

While it is rare, house explosions can happen unexpectedly and cause major damage.

We spoke with the Mishawaka Fire Department about some of the potential causes.

“It’s a very sudden rapid fire event. Zero to a thousand in 1.5 seconds,” said Ray Schultz, Assistant Fire Chief with the Mishawaka Fire Department.

Home explosions can be caused by items we have in everyday households.

“Ignition source like a doorbell, pilot light on, a water heater, a furnace or stove,” said Schultz.

This includes natural gas. Shultz says that is dangerous in numbers.

“It’s got a pretty narrow range like 4%-14%. Between that it’ll explode. The other is if it’s a candescent drug situation so if somebody’s making meth or maybe doing something that they shouldn’t be doing drug-related,” said Schultz.

He says you should never be afraid to call for help.

“If you smell gas, evacuate the house, call us, we’ll try to find out what the cause is. Call the gas company make sure your furnace, water heater, make sure all of that’s maintained. Try to prevent those situations from occurring.” said Schultz.

The most important tip to take from this is to acknowledge when there is an issue and call the right people. If you think it may be serious, call the fire department right away.

You can find other helpful tips about preventing and responding to these situations by clicking here.