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An Invercargill woman and her partner were severely burned after butane canisters exploded in their home.
Lyall Bower said his daughter Becky and her partner Sam were smoking a cigarette in the laundry room of their Kāinga Ora (New Zealand Housing) property on Rothesay Pl, Rockdale around 1.30pm on Wednesday.
“They had some butane cans on the shelf, they fell off. As I understand it, Sam went to grab one and it exploded, ”Bower said.
Even the whiskers and eyebrows of his dogs were scorched.
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Both Becky and Sam had surgery in Dunedin on Thursday.
“It was a horrible accident that shouldn’t have happened, but it is what it is and life goes on,” Bower said.
They were badly burned and it would be a long road to recovery.
Becky called her dad around 9:30 am Thursday.
Sam “looked like a mummy” in the hospital, and Bower believed that Sam had cut his hand to protect his face from the blast.
Robyn Edie / Stuff
Emergency services were called after an explosion at a home in Rothesay Pl, Invercargill, on Wednesday afternoon.
Becky’s face, left leg, arms and hands were covered in blisters, she said.
Bower went to Southland Hospital about an hour after the blast to see his daughter.
“It’s pretty tough,” he said.
Bower and his partner Heather now have a full house of 10, including Rebecca’s children ages 6, 7 and 9.
One of the children will turn 8 on Saturday.
“That’s the worst part,” he said.
Kavinda Herath / Things
“It’s pretty tough”: Lyall Bower talks about an explosion at his daughter’s Invercargill home on Wednesday.
If Becky did not return to Invercargill on Saturday, the boy will go to Dunedin with his grandmother.
When Becky called them from the hospital Wednesday night, the children collapsed.
“Becky told me, Dad, I turned it off but then it came back on,” Bower said.
He was angered by rumors that the fire was related to methamphetamine.
Heather said there was no way it was a meth house.
Meanwhile, more than 24 hours after the incident, government agencies had yet to confirm what caused the explosion.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand has yet to comment on the incident and has referred all matters to the police.
Southland Area Commanding Inspector Mike Bowman declined to respond Stuffquestions and referred all matters to the police communication team.
Around 4 p.m. Thursday, a response from the police communications team simply says that the fire is not being treated as suspicious and is not believed to be related to methamphetamine.
They did not answer what had caused the explosion.
Kāinga Ora area manager Gill Brown said he was supporting the tenants and their whanāu and in the meantime had arranged temporary alternative accommodation for them.
The property and damage assessment was ongoing.
“We will not comment further on this matter and ask that any additional questions related to this incident be directed to the appropriate authority,” Brown said.
