‘It blew me off right off the floor’: Explosion destroys Transcona home

An explosion destroyed a home and damaged multiple others in the Transcona neighbourhood Wednesday morning, leaving evacuated residents wondering when they can return.

Winnipeg Fire called the explosion “catastrophic.” Debris was seen scattered across the neighbourhood, with residents telling CityNews they could feel the explosion from several blocks away.

Karl Lent, who lives next door to the house where it’s believed the explosion occurred, was at a loss for words.

“I don’t know what to say,” he told CityNews. “My legs are still shaking it felt like it blew me off right off the floor. I never felt an explosion like that.”

Lent was in his garage polishing his motorcycle when he felt the explosion. He caught the immediate aftermath on camera.

“I just took a quick video with my phone and I sent it to my wife and I said ‘Our house is on fire, the neighbour blew up.’ She said, ‘What! I’m coming home,’” said Lent, who has lived in his home for nearly 30 years.

The Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service says it received reports of an explosion close to 11:20 a.m. The situation was deemed under control shortly after 1 p.m.

WFPS says some residents may not be able to return to their homes for a while, after the explosion led to a fire and caused structural damage to neighbouring homes.

“We haven’t evacuated too many people,” said Scott Wilkinson, deputy chief of fire rescue operations at WFPS. “There were some people evacuated from nearby homes, but otherwise we managed to shelter in place a number of them.”

“Can’t go back in there, the back corner of the house is gone,” added Lent.

No injuries have been reported at this time. Cause of the explosion is under investigation. The situation is now under control. It's expected that WFPS crews will remain on scene into the evening. Residents are advised to continue avoiding the area while crews remain on scene.

— City of Winnipeg (@cityofwinnipeg) June 26, 2024

No injuries were reported, but the WFPS says it still isn’t sure if anyone was inside the home during the time of the explosion.

“There is an old gentleman who lives there,” said area resident Brandi Neves. “We are all hoping that he left this morning. We are hoping that nobody was in the house, but we are yet to be told for sure that’s the case.”

Winnipeg Fire has not given a cause for the explosion. The investigation is ongoing.