NATURAL GAS DISASTER
A natural gas explosion killed a firefighter, injured at least a dozen people and leveled parts of a downtown city block Tuesday in this Madison, Wis., suburb. Police got a call at 6:30 p.m. that a construction crew working on the street had punctured a gas line. Police and firefighters were evacuating the area when the gas exploded, igniting four-story flames that burned into the night and belched a plume of smoke that could be seen for miles. The Barr House tavern, its remains pictured at top right, was owned by Cory Barr, the Sun Prairie Fire Department captain who died. He leaves a wife and twin 3-year-old girls. “He was so outgoing, goofy, big-hearted, and would give the shirt off his back to anyone,” said widow Abby Barr. Five of the injured were also firefighters, police said, and one was hospitalized in critical condition.