Ashton Home Explosion

An explosion at a residence occurred due to a faulty automatic ignitor on a furnace. The home was owned by the Ashtons but Wally Davis and his family were living there. The explosion occurred in the basement where the water heater was blasted through the basement floor to Mr. and Mrs. Davis' bedroom above. The explosion sent Mrs. Davis flying with the water heater into the roof. She became unconscious and when she came to she was dangling by her neck in a hole in the ceiling. She broke a board loose and fell to the floor on the pile of debris. Mr. Davis was trapped on the bed with falling debris. The children were in other rooms and were not injured. Wally and his wife were injured with broken ribs, bruises and abrasions, but survived. The blast shifted the entire house off its foundation and pushed the back wall partly out.