Monday, April 5, 2021

My Daughter's House Exploded and All Survived


Isabella with Pippi and Vera

Gas Explosion in Port Washington, Ohio
January 14, 2021


It's been a long time since I've posted anything, and I didn't want you to think I'd disappeared completely. I haven't given up quilting in the least, but life has been complicated. This post will explain a large part of it. While I'm not one to share often about my family life, we felt this went beyond the needs of our privacy.

It started with a phone call after we'd gone to bed. It was the middle of January past. Our daughter, Isabella, said she thought there might be someone in her basement. She heard what she thought was her man door being kicked down. I remember saying to go outside, and we would be there as soon as possible. While trying to get my shoes on in the front hall, our house shook some 4 miles away. I tried and tried to call her back, but she didn't answer. My shaking fingers wouldn't do what they were supposed to by then. We were panicked, but steady running for the truck. She called when we had reached the end of our driveway screaming that her house was gone! It had exploded! Her dog and cat inside were gone, but she had Pippi in her arms. She said she was okay. 





Writing this now still makes me cry. The pictures are still hard for me to look at, but please do. Izzi has a public link to an album at the top of the post which reads Buy a Gas Detector. There is also a video of a camera at the end of her road. 



She stood 5 feet from the house when it blew up if you can imagine. Our family wants people to understand what happened, the absolute miracle of it all, and how to protect your own home. Gas detectors are inexpensive, and can save your life. She didn't have one because we didn't know there was such a thing. Now we do, and now you do, too.  

Thank you for reading this important story.


The Morning After



When another daughter and son went back the next morning to look for the missing animals, there was just wreckage. My daughter took pictures, and when she blew this up she saw Vera sitting in the middle of a still smoking house waiting for someone to find her!






Petra, found in a piece of tin after 4 days, burned badly with very little hair left. She lost part of her ears, but otherwise fully recovered including her whiskers.


Hi friends, As many people have heard (and literally felt from miles away), my house was leveled in a natural gas...

Posted by Isabella Stocker on Friday, March 26, 2021
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17 comments:

Carol R. said...

OMGosh!!! What a scary thing to have happen. I'm so glad that everyone is ok, though. I've never heard of a gas detector either -- smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors. I think I'll be purchasing one for each of our adult kids. Going through something like this will take time to recover and you will get back to your 'normal' life soon enough. Blogging and such can wait. :)

Sherrill said...

WOW!! What a horrible thing to happen! So scary! I can't believe the animals inside survived. Unbelievable. So glad there was a happy ending to this experience!!

KaHolly said...

Good job getting this story out there! Can you just imagine how many lives you and Izzy might save?

shoshu said...

my heart just goes out to all of you, thank G-d everyone made it out alive and many many prayers for a full recovery, in body and soul for you all.

patty a. said...

Oh my goodness that is so scary! I am so glad your daughter is ok and that her other dog and cat were found. Is is a miracle that they survived such a violent event.

Barb N said...

Oh my goodness, how frightening for you all, and what a tragedy! I can see why it took you this long to write about it. What a blessing you thought to tell her to go outside!

barbara woods said...

Praise the Lord

Pamela Arbour said...

Wow! Thanks for sharing and thanks be to God for sparing you and your precious animals. A true miracle.

sandi s said...

I’m so glad your daughter is safe and also her fur babies! Thank you for sharing your story! Hugs,

Tu-Na Quilts said...

Your daughter’s story is heartbreaking but I am so happy that she survived and has you nearby to support and comfort her. She has wise words to share with everyone to keep protected. She needs a quilt!

audrey said...

What an enormous blessing that your daughter is still alive! Wow. Very traumatic for all of you I'm sure. I can definitely see why posting has not been your top priority.:)

Shelina (formerly known as Shasta) said...

Oh wow, that is awful! I am so glad you told her to go outside and that all of the animals are safe. I would not have thought about going outside.

Susan said...

Wow! How incredibly scary - good thing you told her to go outside. I'm glad she and the pets survived. Take good care of her - she definitely needs you right now.

Anja @ Anja Quilts said...

I'm so glad to hear that your daughter is okay. What a terrible thing to experience.

grammajudyb said...

That is so frightening! I’m glad Isabella and her pets are safe, and relatively unharmed. But, how sad to be traumatized so and to lose things that are sentimental! Hugs to you all!

Paula said...

My prayers are with your family! Thank you for sharing this and the encouraging the purchase of fire detectors. We'll be buying one and I think we need to buy them for our kids as well. I hope your daughter continues to heal physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Nancy said...

Oh, Julie, what a horrendous accident! I'm so glad your daughter and her pets are safe but also sorry they had to go through this and that she lost the house--her home--she'd been restoring. I don't know how one recovers from such an experience. Prayers and blessings to your, her, and her pets. (And yes, I'm far, far behind in my blog reading.)