Among the 18 families displaced by the blast, the Crump family arrived home to find their house destroyed.
“The police did get the dog and eventually we were able to go see our home,” said Greg Crump, whose home was in the 140 block of Saddle Brook Road.
“My son said, ‘Dad, where are we going to sleep tonight?’” added Crump.
At around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, authorities said an explosion likely originating from a gas line malfunction leveled a home at the top of Saddle Brook Road.
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A saving grace is that no serious injuries were reported and no one was killed.
Authorities are unsure if the early-afternoon explosion originated inside or outside the home.
Terry Mills, City of Calhoun deputy fire chief, said Atlanta Gas Light was investigating the underground gas lines, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation will also be investigating.
“As of right now we still believe it was an explosion due to some kind of build up of gas inside the home,” Mills said.
Until the surrounding 18 homes can be checked for safety, those residents will not be able to return to their homes, Mills said.
Approximately seven homes will need to be demolished and rebuilt because of severe structural damage.
The name of the family whose home exploded was not confirmed by press time, but the family’s pastor, Phil White of the Calhoun Seventh-day Adventist Church, said they were normally home at the time of the explosion.
It was sheer luck the family was not home Wednesday when the incident occurred.
The homeowner arrived shortly after the blast and has been in a state of shock ever since.
“They’ve actually been finding their belongings miles away,” the pastor said.
Several other of the residents, who were not displaced, also reported minor damage to their homes. Neighbor Tim Old said he had damage to his windows and garage door.
He was home, just down the hill from the leveled residence, when the explosion occurred.
“It was such a violent explosion it had to be gas,” Old said.
Richard Cooper, the public information officer for Gordon County EMA, said that firefighters were still putting out hot spots late Thursday and expected to let people go in and get some of their belongings from houses.
A command center is being set up to help area residents and representatives from Chick-fil-A were on the scene helping to provide for the displaced families and emergency personnel. A shelter was set up at Belmont Baptist Church, Mills said, but at this time the displaced residents all had a place to stay.
Cooper said anyone wishing to assist can call 1-678-848-4156.
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