At least eight people were hurt when a mountain home under construction exploded Tuesday afternoon in the town of South Fork in southwestern Colorado.
Six of the injured were airlifted to Denver-area hospitals, and rest were taken to Rio Grande Hospital in Del Norte, according to the Rio Grande County Sheriff’s Office.
The cause of the blast is under investigation, but Rio Grande County Undersheriff Charles Chick issued a statement indicating that a space heater may have ignited “fumes and heating oil” in the home at 0055 Iron Bridge Place in the River Greens subdivision just after 1 p.m.
Witnesses and rescuers have reported as many as 13 people at the home at the time of the explosion. The crew was thought to be installing drywall or insulation.
The explosion blew out the walls, and the roof collapsed, photos from the scene indicate.
The homeowner is reported to be among the injured. A voice message left on the most recent registered property owner’s home voice mail was not returned.
The names of the injured have not been released, so hospitals would not comment on their conditions, citing privacy rules. The family of one of those injured asked that his or her name and condition be withheld, according to a spokeswoman for University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora, where four of the victims were taken.
One person was airlifted to St. Anthony Central Hospital in Denver, and another to Swedish Medical Center in Englewood.
Helicopters from Flight for Life and AirLife Denver transported the victims.
Rescuers from fire departments and law enforcement agencies across the region rushed to the home site after the blast.
South Fork is on the southwestern end of the San Luis Valley about 120 miles west of Walsenburg. It’s a growing town of part-time mountain homeowners at 8,200 feet in elevation, according to public records.
The town has a permanent population of about 650 residents and 274 households, but the population can swell to 2,400 during peak months in the scenic region, according to city records.
Construction of mountain estates has boomed since the town incorporated in 1992, when the year-round population was about 350 residents, census records show.
Tom McGhee: 303-954-1671 or tmcghee@denverpost.com
