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Cause of explosion inside Redding apartment revealed by fire official

Updated: 01-11-2024, 05.49 AM

An explosion that caused a small fire at a Redding apartment and displaced tenants on Monday, Oct. 28 was triggered by butane, ignited by an open flame, according to the Redding Fire Department.

The highly flammable gas was leaking from a bottle inside the apartment, located off Benton Drive, near Quartz Hill Road, Redding Fire Prevention Officer Guido Concello said on Thursday.

The explosion and resulting fire scorched the interior and damaged the structure of the four-until building at Heritage Plaza apartments. It displaced exterior walls, Concello reported Monday.

A fence surrounds four units of the Heritage Plaza apartments in Redding on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024. The units were damaged by an explosion inside one of the units two days earlier, on Monday, Oct. 28.A fence surrounds four units of the Heritage Plaza apartments in Redding on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024. The units were damaged by an explosion inside one of the units two days earlier, on Monday, Oct. 28.

A fence surrounds four units of the Heritage Plaza apartments in Redding on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024. The units were damaged by an explosion inside one of the units two days earlier, on Monday, Oct. 28.

It displaced residents, too, who had to evacuate their homes. On Wednesday morning, a chain-link fence surrounded the building damaged by the explosion. Red notices on the doors of the four units said the homes were unsafe to occupy.

Staff at the Heritage Plaza manager’s office declined to comment on Thursday, nor would they say if tenants would be able to return to their homes this week.

No one was hurt in the explosion or fire, Concello said, and there was no damage to adjacent buildings.

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More: Explosion inside Redding apartment being investigated by fire officials

Redding firefighters didn’t see smoke or flames outside the building when they first arrived at the Benton Drive apartment complex on Monday, Concello reported; it was when they checked indoors that they found a small smoldering fire in a bedroom and obvious signs something blew up.

Jessica Skropanic is a features reporter for the Record Searchlight/USA Today Network. She covers science, arts, social issues and news stories. Follow her on Twitter @RS_JSkropanic and on Facebook. Join Jessica in the Get Out! Nor Cal recreation Facebook group. To support and sustain this work, please subscribe today. Thank you.

This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Butane gas leak, open flame blamed for Redding apartment explosion

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