Fires leave 2 dead in Kettering, Trotwood
Authorities say causes have not yet been determined.
A Kettering house exploded and caught fire, killing a woman. Less than two hours later, another woman died in a Trotwood house fire.
A Kettering house exploded and caught fire early Tuesday, killing a 58-year-old woman inside. About 90 minutes later, a Trotwood woman died in a house fire there.
Causes have not been determined and the investigations are ongoing in a house explosion and fire in the 400 block of North Claridge Drive in Kettering and in a house fire in the 4000 block of Glencross Drive in Trotwood.
The victim in the Kettering fire was identified as Darlene Baumgardner, according to the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office. The identity of the woman killed in the Trotwood fire is expected to be released this morning, according to the coroner’s office.
When the flames were extinguished at the house on North Claridge Drive, nothing but charred and splintered debris remained.
The Kettering emergency dispatch center was inundated with calls from neighbors, the first shortly after 4:30 a.m.
“Oh my God. I can see it a little better now. I think the house has collapsed. There was an explosion. There’s stuff in the yard,” one of the first 9-1-1 callers reported.
Kettering firefighters encountered flames and found Baumgardner in critical condition outside of the home, according to Kettering Fire Chief Tom Butts.
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Butts said based on the level of destruction to the home, he suspects the cause will be linked to a natural gas leak.
“It sure seems like it could have been fed by natural gas of some sort, just due to the bulk of the explosion here and the debris field,” he said. “I’m believing that the neighborhood is in shock from this occurring ... This is a tragic event, but we’ll do everything we possibly can do to figure out exactly what caused this, so that this never happens again, or we can figure out how to keep this from happening again.”
Residents who live near the home told WHIO’s Sean Cudahy they were wakened by a loud boom that shook their homes.
“The garage door was blown across the street ... Just an ‘oh my God’ moment,” said neighbor Jim Brown.
Neighbor Cynthia Michael said she and her husband heard the boom and searched their home for what might have caused it.
“It could happen to anybody,” Michael said. “You’re very blessed if your house is intact, especially considering this time of year and Christmas. It makes it even harder.”
A similar explosion hap- pened March 28 in the 400 block of Pamela Sue Drive in Kettering. Four people and a dog escaped, but one per- son suffered injuries.
Also Tuesday, Trotwood crews were called to a house fire on Glencross Drive. Ini- tial reports indicated fire and smoke were showing when crews arrived.
Officials have not said much about their investi- gation so far, except that there were working smoke alarms in the home.
Robin White, who lives across from the scene of the fatal fire, said she saw the lights outside her home and the coroner’s vehicle.
White said the victim “was a good woman.”
“It’s sad when you got death around you, but it also glorifies God because I’m a Christian and I know we all got to go . ... My heart goes out to them.”
Diane Campbell, a friend of the victim, said she was a “sweet, lovely woman” who hosted pool parties and gatherings for friends and family.
“She was a beautiful, wonderful woman ... Nothing bad could be said about her,” Campbell said.
While the causes have not been determined, heating related fires increase during the cold weather months, according to the State Fire Marshal’s Office.
From October 2016 to March of this year, there were 2,640 fires related to residential heating, according to Kelly Stincer, spokes- woman for the State Fire Marshal’s Office.
That comes out to over 40 percent of all fires in the state during that same time, Stincer said.