Three young people died in an inferno early Sunday at a home near Roxborough State Park after gathering there to mourn the death of one man’s mother.
As many as 18 people were at 9877 Fairwood St. on Saturday evening after receiving news that the mother of Joe Shedron Jr., who lived there, had died from cancer, friends and neighbors said.
Neighbors said they heard an explosion or loud popping sounds at about 3:25 a.m. Sunday and saw the house burning.
“I couldn’t get halfway across the street, the heat was so intense,” said Stuart Buckley, who lives directly across from the home.
Five people apparently were in the house when the fire broke out.
One person escaped unscathed, and another fled the house and was taken to Littleton Adventist Hospital with burns over 70 percent of his body.
Buckley said the burned man was lying by a rosebush outside the blazing building when he reached his side.
“He said he came out through the front door, but I just couldn’t see that. It was like running through a bonfire,” Buckley said. “I gather he ran for what he thought was a door, squeezed his eyes shut and kept on going.”
When firefighters left the fire station a few blocks from the scene, they saw an orange fireball rising from the home, said Cindy Matthews, West Metro Fire and Rescue spokeswoman.
The fire was contained within 45 minutes after the blaze had leveled the two-story home, in a middle-class area built in the 1980s. Authorities were still sifting through rubble eight hours later.
Authorities are investigating the cause of the blaze.
Crews discovered the bodies late Sunday morning and removed the first one at about 12:45 p.m. The bodies were so badly burned, it was impossible to even determine their gender, authorities said.
Identification and cause of death will be determined by the coroner’s office, Matthews said.
But friends and neighbors said Shedron, his girlfriend Amber Jeffers and a friend, Jeremy McCarroll, were in the house. They are between 18 and 24 years old, according to the Doug las County Sheriff’s Office.
Family members of the missing waited near the home for news as firefighters searched. A woman screamed repeatedly when they were told that bodies had been found.
According to property rec ords, the burned home is owned by Joe Shedron Sr. The motorcycle mechanic was in Sturgis, S.D., on business when his home blew up, Matthews said.
Hundreds gathered at a vigil Sunday evening outside Nicolo’s Pizza, a nearby restaurant where McCarroll worked. Friends set candles around a brick planter, and someone put a framed picture of Jeffers in the middle.
Teenagers wept and hugged as the Rev. David Jarboe of the Gathering church in Roxborough encouraged them to pray for the families and friends of the victims.
He looked out at the dozens of teenagers at the vigil and said, “Some of them never dreamed they would be standing here doing this, and we need to pray for them.”
The Roxborough Marketplace is establishing a memorial altar for flowers in front of the library branch next to Nicolo’s, and Rose Giacchino, owner of a nearby Dazbog Coffee, is accepting donations to help those affected by the explosion.
Giacchino is a friend of the Jeffers family. She said Sunday afternoon that Shedron Sr. was on his way home from Sturgis after being notified of the disaster.
On Saturday, Joe Shedron Jr. received word that his mother had died, said Kathleen Allen, owner of Nicolo’s.
“The kids went there because Joey’s mom died, to give them support,” Allen said.
Shedron Sr., who is divorced from his wife, didn’t live at the home. He owns a motorcycle-repair shop, J.S. Pro-Formance, according to records at the Colorado secretary of state’s office.
The Shedrons also worked on motorcycles in their garage, where they kept fuel, oil and other flammables, neighbors said.
Buckley said there were frequent parties at the house.
Two neighboring houses also caught fire, but the occupants escaped without harm.
Tom McGhee: 303-954-1671 or tmcghee@denverpost.com
