Explosion in Indianapolis most likely due to natural gas

10 Nov 2012 - suburb of Richmond Hill

Two homes were utterly destroyed in an explosion in a suburban area of Indianapolis. The explosion resulted in the deaths of two people who were in the basement of the home next door to the house that exploded. In addition, 31 homes in the area have been severely damaged. Luckily, the home owners were away at the time of the blast.

Early reports as to the cause center on the home's furnace or other possible gas appliances in the home. According to news reports, the furnace had malfunctioned within the two weeks prior to the blast, and the furnace reportedly would not turn on, and after a weekend out of the home, the thermostat was replaced.

The sound of the explosion was heard several miles away. The blast was so powerful that it knocked out windows and doors, and caused other structural damage to home within a two block radius. At least five homes are no longer livable. Over 200 people were evacuated from their home due to the explosion and the resulting fire that spread quickly through the neighborhood.

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Analysis and Opinion

The local gas company, Citizens Gas, was quick to report that they had not received any reports of a gas smell or other indications of a gas leak prior to the blast.

However, the family that lived in the exploded home were away from the weekend, and the blast occurred at about 11:10 pm. The next closest neighbors were found dead in their basement, where they had been watching TV. Given these circumstances, it is unlikely that was anyone who might have been present before the blast to even notice a smell or any other sign a gas leak.

Since it was also reported that the furnace would not turn on in the week or two before the explosion, that points towards a possible source of the explosion. Furnaces are designed to shut down if there is a problem with gas flow, and there is the possibility that simply replacing the thermostat and restarting the furnace only hid the problem.

As at writing, the official cause has not been released. Hopefully the ongoing official investigation will find the culprit with some certainty.

The two news videos below provide the information that is available to date as far as official causes of the explosion go - however most reports lean towards natural gas as the probably cause in some fashion. What is your sense of the cause when you watch the videos?

Alternative Analysis and Opinion

Here's why I ask. It's not only the gas company that is eager to show that natural gas is not the cause of the blast. There is a theory floating about that somehow the explosion and fire was due to something from the sky. A Hellfire missile is suggested in the video below.

As appealing as conspiracy theories are, I can't say I agree with the analysis...

The premise rests mainly on the premise that gas explosions do not cause fire. While it's true that the two are not always related, my research indicates that there often IS a link. A gas explosion often DOES cause a fire.

One of the best examples is here, at my analysis of the Penn Mar Shopping Center in Maryland. In the video that was taken by an onboard cam of the fire truck, we can clearly see the explosion occur and the resulting fire immediately after.

Other stories I've covered also include a fire - very large, destructive fires - immediately after a gas explosion:

• Natural gas pipeline explosion - near Alice, Texas
• Gas Pipeline Explosion at Pemex, Reynosa, Mexico

As for the contention that an explosion of that size would have required a huge amount of natural gas - maybe. But again, the house was unoccupied for at least the day, and it is unlikely that outsiders could have smelled gas from a sealed-up home. The closest neighbours were downstairs in their home and so would not have been able to smell anything either.

What is intriguing though is the report of incoming lights that were reported at 23:30. Problem is, that is about 20 minutes AFTER the explosion.

Perhaps it was UFOs coming by to check out the explosion....

Here's the alternative analysis and opinion of this event, that questions the cause of the explosion.

Please watch it and add your comments below...

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Best Local News Coverage

Best reporting:

• RTV6 - Loud explosion rocks Indianapolis

Best news videos:

More video: Aerial View Video of neighbourhood the day after the explosion

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