Fire officials in Aspen believe an explosion and subsequent fire Sunday morning was caused by a natural gas meter damaged by falling ice and snow. KDNK's Lucas Turner has more.
An unnamed Aspen man in the West-End Neighborhood was injured in the explosion, which damaged his garage and started a fire. He was taken in an ambulance to the Aspen Hospital and later airlifted to a hospital in Denver. As of press time Sunday his condition was unknown.
The Aspen Fire Protection District believes the incident is related to a natural gas leak that occurred after heavy snow and ice fell from the roof of the garage, damaging the natural gas meter below.
First-responders included 20 firefighters, 4 paramedics, 4 police officers, and 3 technicians form Black Hills Energy, who owns the meter.
Officials say residents should check for and remove ice dams along roof edges, dig out any snow that accumulates around gas meters, and make sure meters in danger of being hit by falling snow have some kind of protective cover.
