Illinois Assistant Fire Chief's Home Destroyed In Explosion

    Oct. 7, 2004
    This is "Kind of close to home for us, this is our first assistant fire chief's house," said Erie fire chief Jim Melton.
    ERIE -- A gas explosion leveled a home in Erie Wednesday.

    It happened around 3:00 p.m. on Ninth Avenue in Erie, Illinois. The home of Assistant Fire Chief Doug Rutledge was reduced to a pile of lumber. Investigators say it appears a natural gas leak caused the explosion.

    The explosion that rocked this tight knit community. "I was scared to death, shocked and when I saw it, more shock,

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