Explosion in Indianapolis...

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Matt1970

Lifer
Mar 19, 2007
12,320
3
0
The thermostat couldn't be at fault, someone would have had to tamper with the furnace to make it run without an ignition.
 

Pr0d1gy

Diamond Member
Jan 30, 2005
7,774
0
76
Wow, this seemingly almost non-story is suddenly interesting. COULD an explosion that big be caused by a furnace, or even a homemade bomb? Seems pretty destructive for a nat gas leak....
 

Fern

Elite Member
Sep 30, 2003
26,907
174
106
Seems odd. I recall a big explosion from natural gas a couple of years ago in CA. They seemed to identify the cause immediately. Yet here they cannot.

Fern
 

Londo_Jowo

Lifer
Jan 31, 2010
17,303
158
106
londojowo.hypermart.net
Based on this the investigators are thinking it was a natural gas explosion.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/natio...cdcdce-2def-11e2-b631-2aad9d9c73ac_story.html

INDIANAPOLIS — Investigators looking for the cause of a deadly Indianapolis house explosion got more support for their theory that natural gas was a factor Wednesday when an attorney for the owner of a home at the core of the blast said his client’s 12-year-old daughter had smelled a strange odor off and on for weeks.

Randall Cable, an attorney for homeowner Monserrate Shirley, said Wednesday that the woman’s daughter had complained of an odor outdoors and in the garage area for several weeks before Saturday’s blast that leveled two homes and left dozens more uninhabitable. Two people were killed.
“Extensive gas explosions are not easy to put back together,” forensics consultant Jay A.Siegel said. “Finding the pieces and putting them back together is a giant puzzle.”
 

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Mar 5, 2001
49,601
167
111
www.slatebrookfarm.com
Yeah, they're nearly positive it was a natural gas explosion. The problem is, it was such a large explosion, you don't get that much energy from a small leak in an appliance (hot water tank fitting, etc.) in a matter of a day or so of leaking.

Personally, I think they're looking for a smoking gun that proves foul play. I'd almost bet that the authorities are thinking it, but not saying it. Leaks: you spray a soapy water like fluid on the joints, etc., and look for tiny bubbles. Neighborhood blown to smithereens - that's more like a burner being left on on the stove (with no flame.) "Leak" is an understatement.
 

AdamK47

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
15,759
3,593
136
The guy that died had an 05 GTO and a 74 GTO. You can see them in the crushed garage.

screenshot.jpg


He use to post on the GTO forums.
 
Nov 29, 2006
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http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162...es-faulty-furnace/?tag=contentAux;mostPopular

Owner of exploded Ind. home cites faulty furnace

INDIANAPOLIS The owner of a house that exploded in Indianapolis, killing two people and damaging dozens of homes so severely officials say they must be demolished, said Monday that a problem furnace could be at fault.


John Shirley, 50, of Noblesville, told The Associated Press that his daughter sent him a text message last week complaining that the furnace in the home where she lives with her mother and her mother's boyfriend had gone out and required them to stay at hotel.

But Shirley also said when he asked if the furnace had been fixed, his daughter said yes, and he wasn't aware of any additional problems until he heard from his daughter again Sunday morning.


"I get a text from my daughter saying `Dad, our home is gone.' Then I called my ex-wife and she said what happened," he said.

A source in touch with the couple told CBS Indianapolis affiliate WISH-TV that a member of the family had smelled gas in the house.

Citizens Energy, the natural gas supplier to the home, did not receive any reports about a faulty furnace at the home, but the homeowner wouldn't necessarily report such a problem to the utility, spokeswoman Sarah Holsapple said. And if the homeowner hired someone to fix the furnace, the contractor wouldn't need to tell the utility.

LOL She texted him. Im sorry id assume an exploding house would require an actual phone call.
 

Jaskalas

Lifer
Jun 23, 2004
35,659
9,961
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That has to be the worst article I've ever read. It starts off about an explosion and devolves into some guy wildly speculating and ranting about his ex wife. WTF would they even waste the space for that?

Writer gets paid to fill the space. No filler, no money.
 

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Mar 5, 2001
49,601
167
111
www.slatebrookfarm.com


That makes this:
I think it could have possibly been a drone that was taken over and they missed the main target or they just decided to hit anything with it. Looks like damage from a couple of hellfire missiles.

If not that then maybe a meteor? Wouldn't there be a crater though? Pieces of the rock everywhere?

The news is really quiet about it.. its way down the list of 'stories'. The stupid cia affair is more important some how.
sound pretty retarded now, doesn't it?

I still think the homeowners had something to do with it. You don't just board your cat for a day. (Well, not most normal people.)
 

Jaskalas

Lifer
Jun 23, 2004
35,659
9,961
136
I still think the homeowners had something to do with it. You don't just board your cat for a day. (Well, not most normal people.)

One cat? Double the food / water / cat pan and you could leave them for several days. Up to a week without issue. Well, maybe a surprise waiting for you in bed if they considered the litter too dirty.
 
Jan 25, 2011
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Interesting. They're saying intentional and natural gas. Somebody purposefully leave gas on or cut something and plant ignition source elsewhere? Wasn't the house in trouble and the owners could have motive to collect insurance?

Yeah they would have had to override a few safety features for this to be possible.

Not surprised it was deemed intentional. It's about the only explanation.
 

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Mar 5, 2001
49,601
167
111
www.slatebrookfarm.com
Glad to see that there's evidence. My posts from over a month ago - I said back then that it wasn't from just a leak.

I find the contrast between my posts - near certainty the homeowners were guilty and that it was foul play, vs. this:
I think it could have possibly been a drone that was taken over and they missed the main target or they just decided to hit anything with it. Looks like damage from a couple of hellfire missiles.

LOLOL
 

Fern

Elite Member
Sep 30, 2003
26,907
174
106
I think the explosion was much larger than they expected. I also don't believed they intended to harm others.

But good grief these people are stupid. They clearly didn't know what they were doing, thus killing others.

Moreover, IMO, they had zero chance of pulling this off without getting caught. Even if the explosion was as small as they seemed to have hoped - merely destroying their house - there's no way the Fire Dept wouldn't have discovered all that tampering with valves and manifolds etc. Dumb, dumb.

Fern
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
Can murder be brought for wanton behavior in IN?

Pretty sure there is wanton murder is most states.
 
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