what caused the house to explode

edit by Cary: Added [gas explosion, Lees Corner Road] to subject line for clarity



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/20/2010 04:18PM by Cary.

pics:
http://ccclaudiax.tumblr.com/post/2381974129/explosion-and-fire-in-my-neighborhood-the-whole?ref=nf

Don't know the cause yet, I'm thinking a gas leak. I understand the front door was blown across the street. Geezzzzzzzz

PS. Thanks for posting the pictures. I think half of Brookfield was out there trying to show support.

My Parents live in the house to the right of the house that blew up. My mother said that people think they heard cries from people inside the house. It looks like they were killed. Pray that they all were not in there but it does not look good.

your parents are lying to stir up drama.

they heard nothing.

It was just on Fox 5 News @ 10pm. They said it's a gas leak.

centreville Wrote:
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> It was just on Fox 5 News @ 10pm. They said it's
> a gas leak.

Thanks, did they mention if anyone was home at the time?

My mother said a person told her this not that she heard anything. You are a very bad person to say such a thing when perople are hurting so badly. Why don't you tell me your name so I can kick the shit out of you. You must not know me or you would know to keep your opinions to yourself.

Forsenics is out there picking pieces of flesh out of the trees. Gruesome.

I am the parents of Karl fisher.

No one was home. My son is a crazy fag.

Adam is gay and plays xbox too much

Was anyone home? This makes me sad

There is a real dumbass freak on here. I hope someone finds out who they are. A real chicken not to tell me who they are. People are dead. Have some respect.

So people were home? =(

Still waiting on a definate. I will let you know when I hear something either way.

They were not home Thank God

Latest update from Fox 5 news:

At 8:45pm a neighbor smelled natural gas and dialed 911.

The explosion occurred while the fire department was en route.

No one was home at the time. No injuries.

House is completely destroyed. The neighbors homes were also damaged. These families are staying somewhere else tonight.

I just saw a report.
No one was home...neighbor smelled gas and then called 911.explosion occurred while help was on way.
Thank goodness no one was home.
Keep them in prayers. Christmas time is going to be rough.

centreville Wrote:
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> Latest update from Fox 5 news:
>
> At 8:45pm a neighbor smelled natural gas and
> dialed 911.
>
> The explosion occurred while the fire department
> was en route.
>
> No one was home at the time. No injuries.
>
> House is completely destroyed. The neighbors
> homes were also damaged. These families are
> staying somewhere else tonight.

I am a vol. at a fire dept, and I have been listening to the radio, there has been 2 injuries!! 1st pt has been transported to the hospital and admited, and I haven;t heard anything about 2nd pt yet.

Does anyone know the address?

... Wrote:
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> centreville Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Latest update from Fox 5 news:
> >
> > At 8:45pm a neighbor smelled natural gas and
> > dialed 911.
> >
> > The explosion occurred while the fire
> department
> > was en route.
> >
> > No one was home at the time. No injuries.
> >
> > House is completely destroyed. The neighbors
> > homes were also damaged. These families are
> > staying somewhere else tonight.
>
> I am a vol. at a fire dept, and I have been
> listening to the radio, there has been 2
> injuries!! 1st pt has been transported to the
> hospital and admited, and I haven;t heard anything
> about 2nd pt yet.


Hmmm, well the news didn't mention them, so I'm assuming it's nothing serious. It was confirmed that the house was empty at the time of the explosion though, thankfully.

No. Just know itnext to the house,with orange brick

I believe it is off Lees Corner Rd

I think it is 4303 or 4307 Lees Corner Rd.

My Parents house is 4305 the house next door that took on some damage from the house that blew up.

If anyone knows of needs for any of these families, please post them. I would like to help.

Karl.
Where are you guys staying at ?

Thanks
It's nice to know people care. My parents are friends of the people that lost their house & they are very caring nice people.

Was really glad to hear no one was home. I live on the street and the owners are friends of my inlaws.

My parents are staying with my Brother in Law & sister.
We all live around here so my Parents will be Ok. I hope the people that lost their house have a place to stay.

I believe the owner's have relatives that live on Poplar Tree. Good to have family and friends close by.

Anyone has any idea where any of the neighbores are at?
We'll like to help

I know they are still at 4305.The power is off until they check the integrity tomorrow. They cant find their black cat. He is either hiding or the fire department let him out when they were checking the house.

What about the neighbors on the other side?

Im leary to give any info on a contact number because there was a nut on here earlier. I think the person is gone but you never know. Leave them a note in the mailbox & I will see they get it.

Im not sure that was the orange house. It looks like that house took on more of the blast.

My son lives right there so close to this house that blew up. So good to see so many people with hearts of concern for the people that live there. Soooo glad they were not at home. If anyone hears of a legitimate place to get help to them in next couple of days, please post so we can be a part of helping them get back on their feet.

Thanks you all
got to go

I live diagonally across the street from them. They are out of town and the house sitter missed being inside by like an hour. And now for the conspiracy theories... Last night/this morning there a water main break and they turned some gas off. Wonder if it's related. If they had something with an older style pilot (non-electric pilot) and they turned the gas off without notifying them you bet there will be consequences. Who knows if that's why though. Heard other rumors he did some of his own gas work, so perhaps not to code--again, who knows if thats true.

I can see their Welcome mat on the sidewalk from my window. :-(

By the way, I'm going to see what we can do to help out. Honestly they probably don't need money, especially in the long term since insure will definitely cover. It's the initial period they will need help, with like clothes and possibly gifts for the kids and stuff. I'll find out more when they return. If you have anything to help email me and we'll go from there as far as rounding things up or if you are interested in helping. Please also email if you have any info about them at all... family members, contact info, anything.

email: enigmaV8 AT gmail DOT com

Any guys looking for a good time hit me up.

Terrorism?????

I used to live on Dehaven Dr. If they had water main issues in the neighborhood, Why would they shut down the gas? The 2 are completely unrelated. However, If they hit a gas line during water main repair?

If it was a pilot light that malfunctioned, it would have taken a long time to build that much gas up for that type of explosion.

I told you all Karl was trying to start drama saying there were cries.

My sources said no one home, I called Karl out on it, and as usual I was right. Glad no one was hurt, it's just sad despicable people like Karl try to add drama to a sad situation.

they were working on something near the house the other night i remember passing it on my way home the other night. i dont know weather it was gas or water. maybe its unrelated. I passed by the house on my way home right after the explosion and i yelled for anyone in the house but no one ansered. then the house was engulfed in flames. it was very sad

My previous residence was just off Lees Corner on the north side of 50. Glad to hear no one was hurt.

You guys are all wrong. That was my family. My cousin lived in this house and it was ' blew up ' they went out for dinner but to come home to find there house literally destroyed.

Travisssssssss,please update on how your family is doing.

ouch
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I grew up down the street.

What sucks is this house is was recently redone, was in great shape and well cared for.

There are PLENTY of other houses nearby where an explosion would actually improve the property values.

Maybe the Brookfield Civic Association http://www.brookfieldcivic.org/ can have a link on their website, providing a way for people to donate funds through a local bank or something. I know insurance covers a lot but not everything.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/local-breaking-news/crime-and-public-safety/gas-explosion-destroys-chantil.html

More pictures & Info.

Hi you guys,

That was my aunt and uncles house that exploded. They are safe. Seriously, so lucky that they weren't home, because they were supposed to be home. I posted it on facebook and all my friends are trying to donate toys and clothing for the kids. Thank you everyone who cares. We have a lot of family who all live within the vicinity, so they have a place to stay and whatnot. But anything that can be donated would be greatly appreciated.

oh, the ugly pink brick house with white grout? LOL!

Too bad the entire neighborhood didn't go ka bloody. What a ghetto.

Here's the house before it blew up. I was just commenting to a friend a couple of days ago what a nice house it was and how out of place it was in Lee's Corner. Too bad. It was bringing up the 'hood.
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That house looks like someone spent a ton of money remodeling and expanding it. No doubt this meant the owners took out huge loans. If they were having problems making the payments, there is no way they could sell it for enough to pay off the loans because expanded houses do not sell for very much no matter how much money you put into them. Is it possible that blowing the place up was the only way to recoup the investment??? I am not accusing anyone of anything because I do not know these folks and I do not know anything except what I saw on the news, but the thought crossed my mind after seeing the photo of the house before it blew up. It will be interesting to here the fire department's final investigation results.

Justwondering Wrote:
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> That house looks like someone spent a ton of money
> remodeling and expanding it.

There was a gas explosion out in South Riding back in 1998 that killed a woman and blew the rest of her family out into the yard. Turns out the gas leak was in the yard and saturated the ground to a point that it began to seep into the house. It's pretty odd, but it was like the gas acted like a fluid, suddenly pouring into the basement until it detonated. If I recall correctly, no one even noticed a gas smell that day until right before the house exploded. Unfortunately the family had just moved in to the new house hours earlier.

The NTSB has a full report on it here:

http://www.ntsb.gov/publictn/2001/PAR0101.pdf

There are some real sad individules in this world that need to have the shit kicked out of them. They are so sad that they are afraid to say whats on their mind directly to someone else in fear that they might get hurt. It is easy to hide behind a blog and try to act like they are something that they are not. I would imagine that they are a 12 year old punk that is afraid of girls. Anyone that would pray on people on a site like this is extreemly sick. People that know me would agree that this fool is messing with the wrong person. When you grow up come find me so I can kick your ass. I would not want to hurt a stupid baby that will most likely grow up a queer.

Karl, Instead of calling people names and threatening them because you don't like their postings, why not provide some details about the whole situation. You say your parents lived right next door to the house that blew up, so tell us about who lived in the house. What are they like? Where do they work? Is it a family with kids? Where are they staying now? That kind of posting would be of use to everyone.

I'm just making a point that there are idiots on here that need there asses whipped.

Sorry to be short but someone would need their head examined by putting personal infomation on this site. Too many stupid people on here attacking people when they are down.

If they wanted for you to have that information someone from their family would have posted it.

Enough with this site
This blog needs to be shut down & I imagine will be shutdown at some point.
This is not directed to you but this site brings nuts out of the wood work.

Karl Wrote:
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> I'm just making a point that there are idiots on
> here that need there asses whipped.
>
> Sorry to be short but someone would need their
> head examined by putting personal infomation on
> this site. Too many stupid people on here
> attacking people when they are down.
>
> If they wanted for you to have that information
> someone from their family would have posted it.
>
> Enough with this site
> This blog needs to be shut down & I imagine will
> be shutdown at some point.
> This is not directed to you but this site brings
> nuts out of the wood work.


Yeah, we are bat shit crazy. They should check the gas line going to the house that was put in by that sub ..

trogdor! Wrote:
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> Turns out the gas leak was in the yard and saturated the ground to a
> point that it began to seep into the house. It's
> pretty odd, but it was like the gas acted like a
> fluid, suddenly pouring into the basement until it
> detonated.

I can't resist responding. It is NOT odd that "the gas acted like a fluid", because GAS IS/BEHAVES AS A FLUID!!! Have you never heard of "fluid dynamics"?

karl.. i dont like what i see on this site as well.. but people some people are heartless and cruel.

When people post these threads like... "RIP ____ _____"

People on ffxu like to make fun and taunt the individuals.

so its nothing new on here that people would do that to a sad thread such as this.

I am too very upset about this situation i live very close by and felt the explosion.

But people just do it for there own entertainment.

I like this site and how it informs me on everything.

but the negativity that the site has is very bad.

But speaking on the behalf of ffxu. If you dont like it get out. but if you want to stay, learn how to tolerate it.

im not supporting the negativity on this website, but i can tolerate it and not feel to express my anger toward other people and their smart remarks.

Karl,

If you don't want to post info about the family, then how about telling us more about the house itself. How long ago was it expanded and remodeled? Had the people started living in it again? Or was it still under construction? How much did the people spend on it?

Isaac Newton Wrote:

> I can't resist responding. It is NOT odd that
> "the gas acted like a fluid", because GAS
> IS/BEHAVES AS A FLUID!!! Have you never heard of
> "fluid dynamics"?

I guess what I meant to say was that it was like a 'heavy' fluid, in that it poured into their basement. That is odd because natural gas is lighter than air. I would have assumed a gas leak in the back yard would rise to the surface and dissipate rather than flooding a basement.

I never heard how long the first phone call was made about the gas smell before the house being blown to pieces. Was the gas smell first noted the day before? It seems the smell would have been strong if that much gas had leaked into the basement. Scary stuff.

The scariest part about the whole situation is that in this neighbourhood people are doing their own renovations without permits. Tons of DIY people who don't know shit about electrical work are rewiring their houses and doing really shady "upgrades". I lived in a house down the street that had been renovated by a family of illegal immigrants before the house had been taken back by the bank and their asses deported. The house had all kinds of electrical and plumbing problems that would go unnoticed by the untrained eye. This sort of thing is what happens when people who don't respect building codes do work on their house.

Take a look at Manassas, How many ugly "renovated" houses full of immigrants with multiple families living in them as if they were apartment buildings are there? there's a handful of them...just look for the tacky upgrades. If you are in construction it will be more obvious to you. Just pray that you don't end up living in a house that had been previously renovated by uneducated DIYers.

No one was home, the family was out to dinner. The neighboring houses smelt gas and evacuated.
It was all caused by a gas leak, both neighboring houses have fire damage.

The home was remodeled at least 2 years ago, maybe closer to 3. Yes, there were two children living at the home, one in Middle School. I heard the explosion and saw the fire as it rolled off of that house. I live less that a quarter mile away and this was one of the most frightening things I have ever seen. No body should be making any accusations either toward the family, the sub-contactor, the contractor, the utility or the county before the facts are in. I drive through that intersection every day at least twice and I do not recall there being any recent digging by water or anyone else, but I don't have eyes everywhere, so it could have happened. My family drove by the house 5 minutes before it blew and all I can do is thank our lucky stars that they weren't there when it did blow. Until the facts are in, let's take this for what it is - a horrible tragedy during the holiday season.

I drove past the house today and... Holy shit man. The destruction is colossal.

Oddly, there appeared to be a minivan still parked in the garage and somehow, it didn't appear to be damaged. I'm sure it's a total loss as well, but the part I could see looked perfectly fine.

This does bring up one question. Did the family own two minivans, or were they out with some other family? If they have kids, and nobody was home, what vehicle did they use to get there? Generally speaking, if you've got a minivan, you've got it because you need it when you take the whole family somewhere.

Having two mini vans does not prove shit. Move along now.

When I heard this I never considered the arson/insurance angle. The more I think about it the more I wonder if this was an accident. I bet the arson investigators are thinking the same thing. We'll see.

Andrew Wrote:
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> The scariest part about the whole situation is
> that in this neighbourhood people are doing their
> own renovations without permits.

Word. The permit process is trivial, it isn't expensive to get permits, and the FFX County Inspectors do fast work. Plus, you get some CYA from having the county inspect it, the county will update records to reflect that you did the work, and while it might cause your property taxes to increase, this is only because your home value increased (which is a good thing).

An increased value means increased payout if you have to file a major insurance claim.

Do that shit yourself without permits and you're totally on your own. It's a stupid risk. Plus, if I were your insurance company and the report was that some unapproved home improvements were the cause, yeah, good luck getting me to pay you anything. I'd put money on it that your home owners insurance has a, "If you do shit without permits, yeah, you forefit full coverage." clause.

Case in point, I just finished my basement. I did the plans, framing, reinsulation (the shit that was there sucked), and some of the tile work and bathroom fixtures, but I had people come in to do the electrical, plumbing, and drywall. I'm not fucking with shit that can burn down or flood my home. Oh, I'll change a faucet here and there or install a ceiling light or fan, but I'm not touching the breaker box or running wire, and I'm certainly not fucking with the copper hot and cold water lines.

I had permits, inspections, a floorplan, and then made damn sure the county updated the property record to show the increased square footage, bathrooms, and bars.

Sure, there are times to try and work around the system, but never when you're dealing with your house. That shit should always be done properly.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/21/2010 08:35PM by Oxyclean.

That house before it blew up did not look like it was worth shit. Who would go to prison for that?

Why? Wrote:
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> That house before it blew up did not look like it
> was worth shit. Who would go to prison for that?

Well your mamma for one... ;-) You know... the one you still live with.

Yes, the Brookfield Civic Association is collecting money, working through a bank. You can email the president, Larry, for more info. But here is there website. I am putting a check in the mail today. Lots of small amounts will add up. http://www.brookfieldcivic.org/

Yes, the Brookfield Civic Association is collecting money, working through a bank. You can email the president, Larry, for more info. But here is there website. I am putting a check in the mail today. Lots of small amounts will add up. [www.brookfieldcivic.org]




Annie N Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hi you guys,
>
> That was my aunt and uncles house that exploded.
> They are safe. Seriously, so lucky that they
> weren't home, because they were supposed to be
> home. I posted it on facebook and all my friends
> are trying to donate toys and clothing for the
> kids. Thank you everyone who cares. We have a lot
> of family who all live within the vicinity, so
> they have a place to stay and whatnot. But
> anything that can be donated would be greatly
> appreciated.

Guess this was the house pre-restoration?
http://www.brookfieldcivic.org/photos.php

Roshniii Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> No one was home, the family was out to dinner. The
> neighboring houses smelt gas and evacuated.
> It was all caused by a gas leak, both neighboring
> houses have fire damage.


They smelt the gas? ha ha ha

---------------------------------------------------
W.W.S.D. what would Scooby Doo

The kid who lived in the house is in 3 of my classes.
No one was home, they were on vacation for a week, they came back on the night the house exploded. Everything they had is gone. He came in 1st period the day after (monday) and the teacher asked him where his things were, he said "can i speak to you" him and the teacher went out of the classroom but he hadnt told her because she came in the room and wrote him a pass. After he was gone a girl in our class asked the teacher if she knew about the explsion on lees corner and she said yeah why? the girl replied that was his. and we havent seen him since he hasnt come to school or anything.

I live nearby and after seeing this article about the explosion: http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/cms/story.php?id=2766 I decided to look at existing photos of the explosion to try to find out just what the hell is really going on around here.

The Brookfield Civic Association website has some good information:http://www.brookfieldcivic.org/explosion.php

As does Channel 9:
http://www.wusa9.com/slideshows/gallery.aspx?slideshowname=Chantilly_House_Explosion
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Move on honey. This is not a case for DSI Fairfax.

Here's a gem in the Fairfax Times article from one of the neighbors named Dinh Dang.

"I never raise my thermostat above 73 degrees because I don't want something like this to ever happen to me,"

Um. wtf? I thought asian people were supposed to be intelligent. Your thermostat temperature has nothing to do with being "safer" or immune to gas explosions.

Haha ha is this an Asian are? They never get permits.

So...it's been a few days. I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas.

I was looking through what a few more people have added to this forum topic and I noticed that they were saying the family is asking for donations. Donations eh?...sounds like something complicated their insurance eh? Possibly all the work they did WAS without permits?!

My Brother knows a girl, Anne...who claims to know the family. She was telling my brother that she knew who they were and that she knew them well enough to know that they were asking for help. Sounds like to me that this family is the kind of family that doesn't go about things the legal way but rather an alternative from "the Asian community". Tisk tisk.

Hey. Tard. I don't know them at all and I knew they were asking for donations. It was in the fucking newspaper.

Oh, and people ask for donations even when they have insurance. Have you ever tried filing a large, house-sized claim with an insurance company? One where the company will require a report proving the exact cause? They don'tjust cut massive checks whenever you ask for one.

Insurance is a joke! They make you claim for EVERYTHING you have in your house, right down to your underware. They do not cut you a flat check. Insurance is a fraud. You bet I have a replacement policy but you need to account for it. Sure, like my sales ticket did not also go up in smoke.

PS take photos of your whole house and keep them in a safety deposit box at the bank. Otherwise you are screwed.

PSS I only know this from a family member. It was a nightmare. You can thank State Farm.

For truly expensive items (over $1k), you should get a separate policy to cover those items. You have to show proof of ownership and/or appraisal at the time you add it to the policy, but after that, it's on the policy so if you lose them or they get stolen, just file a claim. If you've got jewelry and such on that policy, you should get it reappraised every year or two because jewelry generally increases in value. It would truly suck to buy something, and then 10 years later it gets stolen and you learn that you can't replace it because an equivalent piece now costs 50% more.

As for photos. That's a very good idea. I may do that tomorrow.

Washington Gas Settles After Chantilly Explosion
The company must pay a penalty and make safety improvements.
By Lisa K. Brown
May 24, 2012
http://chantilly.patch.com/articles/washington-gas-chantilly-explosion

Washington Gas reached a settlement with the State Corporation Commission (SCC) which concludes an investigation conducted after a Chantilly home exploded on Dec. 19, 2010.

While Washington Gas did not admit or deny any safety violations, the investigation revealed nine alleged violations of the SCC’s gas pipeline safety standards.

As part of the settlement, Washington Gas is required to pay the Commonwealth of Virginia $154,800 and make safety improvements, including replacing the copper service lines in the Brookfield neighborhood.

The replacement of the copper service lines must be completed by Nov. 30 of this year. The company must also test the lines as they are replaced and use the information to assess the safety of other service lines in its Virginia territories. Washington Gas is also required to report this information to the SCC and take appropriate actions based on the results.

Washington Gas must also revise some of its procedures, including its emergency response procedures. All field employees and contractors will also be required to receive training on reporting abnormal operating conditions by July 31.

If Washington Gas doesn't comply with these terms, the company must pay another $219,700 to the Commonwealth of Virginia.

A home in the Brookfield neighborhood of Chantilly exploded in Dec. 2010. Credit LisaK.Brown
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