BELLEVUE, Wash. --
On Monday night, Bellevue firefighters responded to a report of a gas leak explosion in a house in the Kelsey Creek neighborhood, reported KIRO 7 Eyewitness News.
Firefighters said the blast lifted the house off its foundation and pushed walls out but did not injure the couple inside.
Officials said a spark from the home's furnace ignited gas that had leaked into a crawl space from a line to a gas fireplace that was damaged.
The homes residents reported the explosion at 8:45 p.m. The first fire crew at the scene said they saw smoke coming from a laundry room and then saw that the gas meter indicated that gas was still flowing to the house. The crew shut off the gas and investigated for fire.
The residents said a gas appliance retrofit was in progress on their recently remodeled home and that they had just moved back into the house after extensive interior remodeling.
Fire officials said a contractor had damaged the gas line, allowing gas to build up in the crawl space after one of the homeowners turned the gas on that day.
Four Bellevue fire engines responded to the scene as well as a medic unit, a medical service officer, fire investigator and battalion chief for a total of 20 fire personnel.
Puget Sound Energy responded to assess damage to the gas line and equipment.
The house, located in the 12900 block of Southeast Sixth Place, sustained an estimated $100,000 in damage.
Copyright 2007 by KIROTV.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
