Snow breaks propane pipe; Widgi Creek garage explodes

A propane explosion and fire in a garage at the Widgi Creek development west of Bend early Sunday was caused by a propane pipe broken by heavy snow removed from the structure’s roof, fire officials said.

A neighbor discovered and reported the fire around 1:20 a.m. in the garage of an unoccupied vacation rental on Seventh Mountain Drive, said Deputy Fire Marshall Jeff Bond.

The units use a shared, buried propane tank, he said, and this unit’s propane meter had been buried under several feet of snow that had been removed from the garage.

A one-inch propane pipe had broken next to the meter in the wall of the garage. The garage then filled with propane until it found an ignition source, he said.

The resulting explosion blew out one wall of the garage and ignited the opposite wall. Firefighters put out the fire and shut off the flow of propane.

There is a way to prevent a similar situation on your property.

“Keep the area around the meter free of snow, because it has a regulator that needs to vent,” Fire Inspector Steve Stenkamp said. “If it can’t vent, it could push gas inside your house, or it could cause your appliances to not operate properly.”

Damage was estimated at $75,000 to the building, which was insured, and $15,000 to contents.

“The Bend Fire Department would like to remind everyone to exercise extreme care when removing snow from roofs or other areas,” Bond said in a news release. “Be aware of where you are putting the snow, and do not pile it on gas meters, fire hydrants, or block access to our emergency egress from important areas.”