Centennial – The clock blown off the wall in Robert Chow’s home read 12:26 a.m., marking the moment a massive explosion leveled a house next door, killing a neighbor.
Don Wright, who lives on the other side of Erik Johnson’s demolished house at 8288 S. Jasmine Court, was flung out of his bed onto the floor. He rushed to help his two daughters, whose bedroom windows had imploded, and led them out to the street.
“My husband was screaming, ‘Get up! Get out of the house!”‘ Kari Wright said. “It’s amazing we walked out without being hurt. It’s just a house. I’m alive and my family is here. I feel very blessed.”
Authorities have not released the victim’s name, but neighbors say they believe they heard the 34-year-old Johnson – who was remodeling the inside of his house – hammering shortly before midnight. A charred body was recovered at the scene.
The Chow and Wright homes sustained blast and fire damage, but no one else was hurt in the explosion in the Foxridge West subdivision near County Line Road and South Holly Street.
Johnson’s house “was totally disintegrated in a couple of seconds,” said neighbor Kathy Elliott, 67, who ran down the street horrified by the thought her daughter’s house was on fire. It wasn’t.
Car alarms were going off, a child was screaming, dogs were howling and neighbors were running out of their homes in pajamas to see the orange glow at the end of the block.
Even 10 blocks away, the concussion sounded like someone drove a truck into the wall of Jasmin Wagner’s house, she said.
Johnson’s business cards and financial records landed blocks away, strands of pink insulation hung from singed tree limbs and a garage door was blown 40 feet into the street.
There were so many roofing nails on County Line Road just south of the home that a city street sweeper came by to collect them, said Andy Lyon, spokesman for South Metro Fire Rescue.
Within minutes of the blast, about 50 firefighters swarmed around the house, Lyon said.
They focused on protecting the homes on either side, because Johnson’s house was already a total loss, Lyon said.
Firefighters evacuated the block as flaming debris drifted down the street, threatening to ignite other homes, which have shaker-wood shingles.
Crews from South Metro and Littleton had the fire contained within an hour but spent two more hours putting out hot spots and searching for victims, Lyon said.
One firefighter found Johnson’s dog, Brutus, a tan bull mastiff, alive in the backyard of the house and carried him away in his arms, Elliott said.
Brutus was taken to the Veterinary Referral Center of Colorado with singed hair and whiskers but was wagging his tail and appeared to be doing well.
Wright said even though his daughters woke up surrounded by shattered glass and the canopy over his teenager’s bed was burned, his children didn’t receive a scratch.
Lyon said it is unclear what caused the fire. But there were containers of kerosene in or near Johnson’s home, he said.
As crews worked at the blast site through the day, streams of curious people walked or drove by to stare at the ruins.
Neighbors said Johnson, a plumber, lived in his house alone. A business card found on the street a block away indicated Johnson was connected to a renewable-energy company called Evolution Energies.
Neighbors said Johnson was a great neighbor who often helped those living nearby with yardwork.
Staff writer Kirk Mitchell can be reached at 303-954-1206 or kmitchell@denverpost.com.
