'Improper use of compressed Gas'; Dozens of residents displaced after 'explosion' in St. Thomas affordable housing complex
CTV
With damage to only three units, there is hope that residents of 16 Queen St. in St. Thomas, Ont. will be able to return to their homes in the next couple of days
With damage to only three units, there is hope that residents of 16 Queen St. in St. Thomas, Ont. will be able to return to their homes in the next couple of days.
The tenants of 45 units have been temporarily displaced after an "explosion" took place in a second-floor unit Friday afternoon.
St. Thomas Chief Fire Inspector Kim Destun says the cause of the blast was "improper use of compressed gas."
"It was enough to shake my apartment," says David Thiessen, a resident in the city’s newest affordable housing building which opened less than six months ago.
"It rocked it like your glasses would rattle or ting together, so it was quite an impact."
Fellow resident Daniel Porter says it was enough to lift his floor up a couple of inches.
"It sounded like a small hand grenade went off below us," says Porter who lives on the fourth floor.
