House explosion in Independence tracked back to construction worker

By Andy Alcock

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    INDEPENDENCE, Missouri (KMBC) — An Independence woman feels lucky to be alive after her home exploded Monday night following a natural gas leak.

Andrea Shipley said she normally would have been in the back part of the house when it exploded. That part of the home is badly damaged. But she was dealing with a broken truck at the time of the explosion.

Her two dogs, Charlie and Daisy, were in the front of the home and were unharmed.

Lauren Moreland’s husband and two sons were home right across the street from the explosion.

“I was at work, and they heard a boom, and our house shook. And that’s when they discovered that the house was on fire and there had been an explosion. It was terrifying,” she said.

According to investigators with the Independence Fire Department, a construction crew accidentally hit the natural gas line while digging a ditch next to the home.

A crew member called 911, so firefighters and a crew from Spire, the gas company, were on the scene when the house exploded and burst into flames.

“It’s pretty common. I would say probably once a week we get a call for a gas line that’s been struck,” said Independence Battalion Chief Eric Michel.

He said crews are supposed to use hand tools once they get within a couple of feet of the gas line.

Michel said that because firefighters were on the scene when the house exploded and burst into flames, they were able to get the fire under control quickly. He added that the neighborhood was evacuated about a block in each direction because the gas had leaked into the sewer line and spread to other homes.

“And then they went in with gas monitors to each residence and confirmed that their gas levels were at a safe, safe level. They did find one house that had a high level. They were able to ventilate it without any incident,” Michel said.

Terrin Webster was at home a few doors west of where the explosion took place.

“I was making dinner for my kids last night. I heard a super loud boom. I thought maybe one of my kids did something. They didn’t,” she said. “I looked down at the corner over here, and there’s a huge fire. And I was like, oh, man. And that’s when the sirens went off. It took less than a minute for the boom to happen, and then for them to get over there, and there were three fire trucks, EMS, police, you know, just a ton of stuff.”

Shipley has contacted an attorney and claims a Kansas City, Missouri, company is to blame for hitting the gas line. A spokesperson for that company declined to comment.

Shipley said she and her dogs are currently staying with a friend. According to Jackson County records, the home was built in 1914. Shipley rents the home. An attempt to contact her landlord was unsuccessful.

There is an ongoing investigation to determine what happened.

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