PORTAGE, Ind. — Joni Rainwater and her children were walking along Harrison Avenue on Tuesday afternoon when the house in front of them suddenly exploded into flames.
The blast knocked them to the ground and left her 14-year-old daughter covered in burning debris. Killed inside the home was Leona Rice, 86.
Neighbors helped Rainwater pull the teen from the debris.
It all happened just as severe storms were beginning to sweep through the area, toppling trees, downing power lines and damaging houses and cars on Harrison and in surrounding neighborhoods. The storm also hindered emergency crews trying to respond to the explosion.
Portage Mayor Austin Bonta said the city had more than 100 trees down after the storm, many entangled with power lines. Cleanup crews had to wait for Northern Indiana Public Service Co. to verify that downed lines had been shut off before they could safely begin cutting trees.
It remained unclear Wednesday if the storm played a role in the explosion. The investigation is continuing and the cause is still being determined, Bonta said.
Rainwater’s daughter was treated at the scene for burns, cuts and bruises caused by the falling debris.
Wednesday, cleaning crews continued to work around the ruins of the home, with fencing placed around the site.
Josh Bailey, who has lived in the neighborhood for nearly eight years, was home with his family when the storm moved through. He put his wife and daughters in a bathroom in the center of their house while he watched trees snap and fall outside.
Then he saw the explosion.
“It was just flames and debris everywhere,” Bailey said.
Bailey ran toward the home and saw several men in the community attempt to remove rubble in an effort to reach Rice. He said he heard screams, but the fire quickly became too intense for people to get close. Bailey said about 10 trees blocked the road leading toward the home, preventing fire trucks from immediately reaching the scene. Neighbors began cutting and moving trees to clear a path.
The storm also left residents dealing with widespread damage and prolonged outages.
At Bailey’s house, his deck and vehicles were damaged. He said the neighborhood also lost power, internet and cellphone service.
“This was hands-down the worst we’ve ever experienced,” Bailey said. “It feels post-apocalyptic.”
Misty Ishii, who has lived in the area since 2018, said a tree fell on her car and nearly every property along her street appeared to have suffered some kind of tree damage.
Rice’s husband was not home at the time of the explosion. Joseph Golab, who was close to the Rice family, returned home after the explosion to find the house completely flattened and debris scattered across his yard. His own home also was damaged by the explosion and storm.
Golab said he spoke with Rice’s husband and invited him into his home. He was in a state of shock, Golab said.
City crews continued working Wednesday to open roads and remove debris. The city has declared a local state of emergency and requested a state emergency declaration as officials seek additional resources.
The mayor also said the city is coordinating community assistance, including free meals for residents affected by the storm, while advising residents to stay off the roads unless travel is necessary.
In Illinois, meanwhile, ComEd reported that another wave of storms that moved through the greater Chicago area on Wednesday caused more outages affecting more than 30,000 customers. That brought the total affected customers over the last 24 hours to nearly 410,000, the utility posted on X. More than 275,000 customers have already been restored, ComEd said in the online post.