Medicine Valley grad, friend injured in explosion

Twenty-three-year-old Jill Kaczor of Osceola, formerly of Curtis, and Melissa Golden, 25, of Osceola, ran from the burning house and were able to drive themselves to Montgomery County Hospital in Red Oak before they were flown by helicopter to St. Elizabeth Regional Medical Center's burn unit in Lincoln.

The Daily Nonpareil of Council Bluff, Iowa, reports that both women suffered burns over most of their bodies in the explosion, which happened about 11:15 p.m., said Red Oak Fire Chief Rick Askey.

Askey said Kaczor and Golden were in town visiting Kim Miller, mother of Golden. Askey said that Miller lived in the house with John Dunbar, neither of whom were home at the time of the explosion.

A neighbor, Carolyn Vanderhoof, said she saw a "ball of flames" and the two women emerge from the smoke and fire. Vanderhoof called 911, and said, "They were hysterical, they were screaming and I was trying to get off the phone because I knew they needed help, but the dispatcher said hang on, they wanted to know this and that and I said really you don't need to know about me because the whole neighborhood is going to go up if you don't get someone down here."

Vanderhoof said, "Anyway, there was this first really loud boom, and then there was another pretty loud boom. By that time, people in the neighborhood were waking up and coming to my porch and we could hear smaller booms. It's been hard because I've been here so long and never witnessed anything like that, never."

KIMT Radio reports that the house was engulfed in flames by the time firefighters arrived. The house and its contents were destroyed; all that remains is the front porch and the southeast corner of the house. KIMT.com reports that the women had been feeling faint and decided to lie down just before the house exploded.

Fire Chief Rick Askey said that the state fire marshal is investigating. It is not known yet what caused the explosion, but authorities have ruled out a natural gas or propane explosion.