Wednesday, August 25, 1999
Six hurt in blast near Germantown
BY JANICE MORSE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
GERMANTOWN, Ohio — Six people, including three children, were injured Tuesday when a house exploded near here.
Germantown Fire Chief Gary Nesslage said the blast tossed several people from the house. The victims suffered severe burns and broken bones.
The cause of the blast was not known late Tuesday, but officials were investigating a possible propane leak. Many homes in the area use propane.
Neighbors in the rural Montgomery County subdivision called firefighters about 4:55 p.m., saying the house next door had exploded.
When crews arrived in a driving rain about 10 minutes later, the chief had trouble grasping what he saw.
“As I turned the corner, I looked this way and saw a pile of rubble,” Chief Nesslage said.
Three children lay in the driveway. A man was walking around, mumbling about smelling propane, Chief Nesslage said. Two others were in the back of what remained of the large brick home with an estimated value of $300,000. The family moved in a day ago.
Parts of the house's frame were blown into a large tree. Insulation covered neighboring homes like pink snow.
“The children were pretty severely banged up,” Chief Nesslage said.
The adults were taken to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton. Darrell Neal, 43, and Timothy Blashock, 49, were in serious condition; Melissa Reason, 35, was in critical condition.
The children were taken to Children's Hospital Medical Center in Corryville. Joshua Scott Stamm, 7, and Kenton Reason, 5, were in critical condition; Kenton's sister, Katie, 7, was in fair condition.
Germantown is about 40 miles north of Cincinnati.
Enquirer reporter Phillip Pina contributed to this story.
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