Police continue to investigate deadly Mississauga home explosion

An investigation began Wednesday into the cause of a powerful house explosion that killed one woman and injured at least nine people living in nearby homes that were damaged in Mississauga.

Authorities said a specialized canine search-and-rescue team was able to go into the rubble of the house that blew up on Tuesday afternoon, and found no sign of any remaining victims.

“The dogs go in to look for scent of live victims. Both passes of the houses on either side of the blast zone showed us with no hits,” Mississauga Fire Chief Tim Beckett told reporters on Wednesday.

“So … we were comfortable that there was nobody in those buildings and in fact we now have people accountable on both sides of the blast zone.”

The explosion happened at a home on Hickory Drive near Dixie Road just after 4 p.m. on Tuesday. Police couldn’t say if the victim was inside the home that exploded.

“Was she a passerby or living in the house? That’s all a part of the investigation right now we’re trying to determine,” Beckett said.

He said the “long process” of investigating the cause of the fire was led by Ontario’s Fire Marshal’s office.

Jeff Minten, of the fire marshal’s office, said while they wouldn’t speculate as to the cause of the fire, they will be looking at the role gas might have played in the explosion.

“We’re looking to see what kind of fuels are in there. Gases are predominately going to be our focus,” Minten said. “Right now, we don’t know what caused it.”

“We’ll be looking at everything from accidental causes to if there was a deliberate cause to this.”

 

Investigators will also be looking into notes found in the area of the blast site that could be related to the explosion, said Police Chief Jennifer Evans.

“A citizen reported seeing some pieces of paper with possible information that could lead us to the cause of this investigation. We are still on the initial stages of that but we are pursuing that as well […] At this point, it’s still too early to tell,” Evans said.

“It’s too early to speculate right now,” she said of the notes. “There’s a lot of information coming in, but I’m encouraging people if they find anything suspicious in nature or if they recall seeing anything yesterday, to call us. We’re investigating all avenues right now.”

An “outside perimeter” around the blast zone was shrunk on Wednesday, meaning more people would be allowed back into their residences.

The home at the epicentre of the blast was levelled in the explosion, while two houses on either side of it were partially caved in. Debris from the blast was scattered across the streets around the home.

Nearby Burnhamthorpe Community Centre at 1500 Gulleden Dr. was set up as a temporary shelter for displaced residents. By Wednesday morning, Red Cross workers at the Centre said about 100 people had registered there, but no one had stayed the night. The community centre will remain open until 5 p.m., officials said on Wednesday.

Explosion levels one Mississauga home, devastates neighbourhood. Watch the video below or click here to view it.