Man's body recovered after explosion destroys house in north Chicago suburb
LAKE ZURICH, Ill. (CBS) -- A man's body was recovered from the rubble left behind after an explosion destroyed a house Tuesday night near far north suburban Lake Zurich.
The Lake Zurich Fire Department said crews responded to the reported house explosion around 8:30 p.m. in the 23500 block of North Overhill Road. Firefighters found the home "completely leveled."
The homeowner, a 77-year-old man, was unaccounted for after the explosion.
On Friday evening, the Lake County Coroner's office confirmed that man – Timothy Toczylowski – was the one whose body was found. His body was identified by dental records.
An autopsy indicated that he had injuries consistent with smoke inhalation, but toxicology testing was pending late Friday.
Facebook video showed the house at 23525 N. Overhill Dr. in Lake Zurich going up in a wall of orange flames and smoke behind a grove of trees. Video taken closer to the scene showed a side wall of a house collapsed and nearly on the ground as flames roared.
A neighbor's Ring camera captured the moment the house exploded. The video shows two children outside a neighboring home running for cover after the sound of an explosion rocked Overhill Drive.
"Just like that, the house went up, and big boom, and then I ran, and then there was just a lot in one moment," said Emanuel Hernandez, one of the two kids who escaped the blast.
Neighbor Will Juarez said he lives about seven houses down from where the explosion happened, but "It was so loud and so powerful, it shook my whole house [which is] a brick house and it shook it."
Fire officials said the explosion also caused damage to the natural gas meter and Nicor Gas had to turn off the line.
Neighbor Tiffany Koch told CBS News she heard a loud "boom" that sounded like a tree falling.
Two neighboring houses were damaged as the fire spread.
The explosion left neighbors wondering if the neighborhood is safe. Lake Zurich Fire Chief David Pilgard said there are no hazards to any other homes in the area.
"We've done some environmental sampling on the meters that we carry to make sure the air quality is essentially safe," Lake Zurich Fire Chief David Pilgard said. "Nicor has already worked with those houses to turn their natural gas on, and to check their houses to ensure that anything that uses natural gas in their house got turned on correctly, and there's nothing leaking in their houses."
Lake County sheriffs said the explosion does not appear suspicious or drug-related but are investigating it as a possible gas leak.
