House in Moon Township leveled by explosion

MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Fire investigators returned Friday to the scene of an explosion that leveled a home in Moon Township.

Firefighters and police were called to Convair Drive, off University Boulevard, just before 4 p.m., Thursday.

Photos: House explosion in Moon Township

arrived on scene, she reported seeing heavy smoke. She spoke with Ray and Mary Collins, who live next door to the damaged home. They heard and felt the blast.

“I was in the garage, just sitting there. All of a sudden, the entire house shook - a tremendous explosion,” Ray Collins said. “I felt like I was back in Vietnam. I went running upstairs and my wife said, ‘It’s Brian’s house.’ Total destruction.”

VIDEO: Explosion damaged front of Moon Township home, fire caused collapse

"I was sitting in (the) living room watching TV and this big boom! I got up and looked out, and the house had blown up," Mary Collins said. "It shook everything.  I'm surprised our windows didn't break. It was horrendous."

Collins said the homeowner was at work at the time of the explosion. The man has lived in the home for nearly two-and-a-half years.

His two dogs were taken to a local veterinarian's office, where they had to be euthanized due to their injuries.

"The only think you can say is, 'I'm sorry.' It's like a death in the family," Ray Collins said. "I know how we felt when we had to have our dog put down and that was a long time ago."

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A witness told

that the explosion blew out the front of the home. It was then consumed by fire until it collapsed.

"I saw the front of the house was pretty much gone, but most of the structure was intact," said Glenn Wynn. "The more the fire caught, the heavier it got. It started collapsing."

The force of the explosion scattered debris 100-200 feet from the home. The intense heat melted the siding on the house next door.

Peoples Gas turned off all service to the neighborhood while it, the fire marshal and police investigate the cause. Channel 11 learned service to the majority of the homes was restored overnight. The utility will run tests on the lines leading to the house.

"We don't know if it's a gas explosion. We don't know if the explosion occurred from an outside source. We don't know if the explosion occurred from inside the house," said Barry Kukovich of Peoples Gas.

However, officials did say no other homeowners in the neighborhood should be worried.

Investigators were going through the debris Friday, searching for a cause of the blast. Crews examined the main gas line to the house, which appeared to be fine, according to investigators. Gas Links on Convair and Lockheed Streets were also examined.

Determining a cause could take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, Kaminski learned.

Cox Media Group