Utah officials were forced to blow up a house in a controlled explosion after the homeowner found old dynamite.
The Unified Fire Authority blew up a house in Holladay at 4 am on April 24 after the female owner found large amounts of old dynamite stashed in her deceased husband’s belongings.
According to officials, the explosive material had been passed down from generation to generation before the elderly woman found it.
‘She knew it was dangerous, she didn’t know the extent but knew she needed help taking care of it,’ said Unified Fire Authority Assistant Chief Riley Pilgrim.
The Assistant Chief believes that the dynamite was about 40 to 60 years old. Firefighters were able to find 25 sticks outside and eight in the basement near various chemicals.
The Unified Fire Authority blew up a house in Holladay at 4am today morning after the female owner found large amounts of old dynamite stashed in her deceased husband’s belongings
Footage from the moment of the detonation shows an official pressing a button on remote to activate the detonation
The Assistant Chief believes that the dynamite was about 40 to 60 years old and firefighters were able to find twenty-five sticks outside and eight in the basement near various chemicals
According to officials, the explosive material had been passed down from generation to generation before the elderly woman found it
‘Because of the age and the crystallization and deterioration of the product it just became way too dangerous to handle even taking one stick out could’ve created a significant threat to our personnel,’ he said.
As a result, approximately 450 homes were evacuated in Holladay before the blast.
Footage from the moment of the detonation shows an official pressing a button on a remote to activate the detonation.
In the span of seconds, the house can be seen exploding with debris flying into the air amid a ball of fire.
The video then shows a massive blaze erupting out of the remains of the property.
In the span of seconds, the house can be seen exploding with debris flying into the air amid a ball of fire
The UFA that the homeowner’s irreplaceable belongings were removed before the detonation
The Authority explained in an Instagram post: ‘In the field of fire and EMS we often must make difficult decisions to minimize the risks to human life.
‘Due to the number of variables involved in each emergency, there is no one size fits all solution.
‘Our primary concern is always for the lives of the community we serve and the safety of any on scene personnel.
‘Before this controlled detonation, UFA worked closely with the homeowner to remove some of her irreplaceable belongings.
‘UFA worked very closely with UPD and the County Emergency Communications Center to evacuate the surrounding area. There were many other agencies that played a pivotal role in making this coordinated effort as safe as possible.’
According to Fox13, all residents barring one were soon able to to return to their homes.
