‘They have nothing’: Calgary family trying to pick up the pieces after fiery townhouse explosion

A relative of one of the families displaced by an explosion in northeast Calgary over the weekend says they have been left with only the clothes on their backs as they try to wrap their heads around what to do next.

Calgary Fire says they are still investigating what caused a fiery explosion in the community of Monterey Park late Saturday night.

The fire destroyed four townhomes and sent six people to hospital. Calgary fire has said all the residents in the four homes will be displaced.

Helen Pena tells CityNews her aunt, uncle, cousin and grandfather all live in one of the impacted townhomes, and three of them were home in bed at the time of the blast.

She says her aunt, uncle, and cousin were unexpectedly thrown across their rooms when the explosion happened. And then the floor collapsed underneath them.

“It led them right to the first floor,” she says. “They could not go through the front door, but they were lucky enough the window was broken.”

Pena says they were able to jump through the shattered and escape the fire thanks to the help of some neighbours.

Her 38-year-old cousin was taken to hospital with severe burns on his back and sides. Her aunt and uncle were not admitted to hospital, but both have been treated for burns.

Fortunately, her 85-year-old grandfather was out of town at the time, but like the other three, he has lost his possessions. The family did not have renter’s insurance, according to Pena.

“Everything collapsed and it looks like everything is gone, they have nothing,” she says. “From my understanding none of these tenants had renter’s insurance.”

She says the family has been temporarily staying with other relatives and are still trying to figure out their next steps.

“They’ve just been through a lot,” she says. “My aunt isn’t in the right headspace to try to figure out how to do this.”

Pena and her family have setup a GoFundMe page to help the family pay for some of the cost of rebuilding their lives.

Of the six people taken to hospital in the wake of the fire, one was in life-threatening condition, one was in serious condition, and four are were in stable condition. Fire crews also said they rescued a cat.

Investigators are still looking into the cause of the fire and explosion.