Damascus Township, PA – A tranquil, riverfront community was rocked after a house exploded Sunday night, killing a couple in their 70s.
A reported propane gas explosion leveled the two-story wooden structure on the banks of the Upper Delaware River shortly after 10 p.m., killing Frank and Carol Kay, said mourning neighbors Monday.
Today would have been Frank Kay’s 75th birthday, said neighbor Ray Manfray.
The couple had four grown children, neighbors said.
Neighbors described the scene that unfolded late Sunday night.
“It sounded like a bomb,” said Fred Donatelli, a neighbor and friend.
Fellow Damascus resident Michael Tesseyman said,
“It shook the whole town.”
Emergency workers were on the scene the entire night. The second body was not found until late Monday morning, said state police Fire Marshal Steve Kaneski of the Dunmore barracks.
Neighbors and relatives identified the Kays as the victims, but officials wouldn’t confirm the identities because the investigation is continuing.
Wayne County Coroner Edward Howell confirmed “the discovery of two deceased individuals at the scene of the River Road incident in Damascus Township, Wayne County.”
Positive identification and cause and manner of death are pending an investigation and conclusive results will be released in the “near future,” according to the coroner.
The house was reduced to a pile of charred rubble, with visible debris including a destroyed microwave and scorched box springs and insulation.
Neighbors and family members comforted each other at the scene Monday morning.
A sprouting vegetable garden was covered with burnt debris.