Monroe, MI – A propane leak is believed to have caused an explosion and fire that decimated a home on the 5000 block of Labo Rd. early Friday morning.
No one was injured in the blaze, which took at least a half hour to get under control, according to Berlin Township Deputy Fire Chief Tony Cousino. Fire fighters from Berlin, Frenchtown, Exeter, Rockwood and Estral Beach fire departments were still on the scene at noon extinguishing the last of the hot spots.
“The family was all inside asleep and we assume it was a propane explosion,” Cousino said. “The neighbors four houses down, it shook their house. The young man here (who was inside the house) said he woke up and got everybody out of the house, and upon our arrival we had basically fire throughout.”
Cousino said that the explosion blew out almost all of the windows of the home, and that the glass block windows from the basement landed approximately 20 yards away from the structure.
“It was definitely quite the explosion,” he said.
The fire remains under investigation. Monroe Community Ambulance also assisted at the scene, and American Red Cross was contacted to aid the homeowners.