Two Airdrie men are in critical condition in hospital after an explosion caused by the production of drugs in King’s Heights on Jan. 31.
Airdrie RCMP and Airdrie Fire Department (AFD) responded to the explosion at 1080 King’s Heights Rd. at 10:30 p.m. Fire crews concluded that the explosion occurred in one side of the two-storey residential duplex.
The explosion has been classified as suspicious in nature and remains under investigation by the Airdrie Fire Prevention Bureau and the Airdrie RCMP.
“We believe the people who were injured were involved in the production of drugs,” said Airdrie RCMP Insp. Gordon Sage. “The explosion resulted from the process of production of drugs, not an outside source such as a gas leak or anything like that.”
The RCMP can not confirm what type of drugs were being produced as the investigation is still ongoing.
The windows on the main floor of the residence were blown out although the explosion occurred on the second floor. Smoke was seen coming from the main and second levels of the home. The two men are in their late 20s and suffered severe burns. They were found outside of the home by firefighters.
They were immediately transferred to paramedics for treatment and transported to hospital in critical but stable condition.
Once inside the home, firefighters found a small fire burning on the second floor, which was quickly extinguished. Numerous interior walls had significant damage due to the explosion. Homes on either side of the house were temporarily evacuated until the area was deemed safe.
Damages were limited to the residence in which the explosion occurred and no injuries were reported besides the two men who were in the home at the time.
Sage said he doesn’t expect charges to be laid for some time in this case, though he expects that charges will vary when the time comes.
“There are a lot of technical things to be investigated and the two people involved are going to be in hospital for quite a while, they both sustained pretty severe burns to over 70 per cent of their bodies,” said Sage. “We’re looking at all aspects in terms of charges, obviously there’s the drug aspect, but for me the biggest concern is the risk to public safety with something like this, we’ll be looking into charges such as mischief.”
Sage offered some tips for residents to spot what may be a possible drug operation that include:
• Be aware of people bringing non-typical items in and out of homes such as barrels, chemicals and out of the ordinary apparatus.
• If you see anything suspicious notify the police.
Airdrie RCMP is asking anyone with information that could assist in the investigation to call 403-945-7200 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
