Published Saturday, Sept. 20, 1997

Ed Stoner, of Edward Stoner, Jr. Construction, New Castle, removes the frame of a front window in Helen Horney's home on English Avenue in Union Township, Lawrence County. The window was shattered during Thursday night's explosion at a nearby fireworks bunker. (Jean Angelo/Herald)

NEW CASTLE

`Neighbors assess explosion damage`

By Julie Hannon
Herald Staff Writer

Don Palmer walked slowly around his Union Township home on Friday shaking his head in disbelief.

``I knew it was bad, but the morning light sure makes it look a lot worse,'' said Palmer, whose English Avenue home, located just west of New Castle, was put in shambles by Thursday's explosion of a nearby fireworks bunker.

A chunk of the concrete bunker ripped through Palmer's home, which sits about 200 yards away from the site, leaving a horizontal hole, measuring a little over a foot long and four inches deep, in both the front and back of Palmer's home. Debris from that concrete, smothered with gunpowder, littered the side and back yard of the home.

``You can see the skid marks the debris left in the grass as it tore through here,'' said Palmer. ``I just thank God this happened at night when no one was out walking around in the area.''

Helen Horney continues to cleanup the shattered glass littered throughout her English Avenue home on Friday afternoon. She said her kitchen was hit the worst by flying glass and debris from the explosion that ripped through her front windows. (Jean Angelo/Herald)

As he waited for his insurance agent to come and view the damage, Palmer explained that it was pure luck that he wasn't hit with the bedroom ceiling, which collapsed on his bed.

``I had just told the wife I was headed off to bed to grab a few winks because I needed to get up early,'' said Palmer. ``I thank God I didn't get up right then because I might not be in too good shape right now.''

Linden Street neighbor Helen Horney stood in front of her garage door that was buckled by the explosion as she told of the force of the blast ripping through her kitchen.

``All the cupboards flew open and food came rushing out everywhere,'' said Mrs. Horney. ``There's actually pieces of glass from my windows lodged in the cabinets.''

All around the Union Township neighborhood, kids stayed home from school to help in the clean-up. Dozens of neighbors helped one another sweep glass from their homes and board up windows shattered by the explosion.

One Union High School student she thought the explosion was the end of the world.

Most said the power outage following the blast added to their fear because they had a hard time locating other family members. Pennsylvania Power Co. representative Gary McCann said eight homes remained without power on Friday as a precautionary measure ordered by the fire marshal.

Despite claims of neighbors that they smelled strong gas fumes following the explosion, a Columbia Gas spokesman said Friday that natural gas was not related to the explosion.

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Updated Sept. 20, 1997
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