The explosion Thursday in Hoensbroek did not come as a surprise to many local residents. This emerges from a reconstruction by L1 after conversations with neighbors and witnesses. No one was injured, but that may be called a miracle, given the enormous havoc.

It is just after 1 p.m. in the Harmoniestraat in Hoensbroek, a normal neighborhood of semi-detached houses. Suddenly the neighborhood is startled by a huge bang, which can be heard throughout Hoensbroek.

Some think fireworks, others fear a gas explosion. In a few moments, the entire street is littered with glass, pieces of window frames and items from the garage. A huge mess.

Children

An opposite neighbor saw it all happen and now sees the occupant of the property standing in his driveway. He gestures that the children are okay. They were playing in the yard and only have some scrapes. Emergency services quickly arrived on the scene and took the children away as a precaution.

Meanwhile, the mother has also come forward; she was not at home. Other local residents also came to see the havoc, which was enormous. The police cordoned off the street and sent everyone away.

Blown away

The neighbor of the adjacent house was home. "I was at the window and saw that the father of the neighbor across the street was in his garage and was blown three meters to the back," says Leon Offermans, who is happy that there was only damage.

"It's a miracle there were no deaths; the man himself has already been very lucky. You'll just be biking or walking by."

Hazard

In the first hours after the explosion, local residents are not allowed to return. There is still a danger of explosion. Only when Enexis employees have shut off the gas will the situation be safe again.

Then it turns out that other properties also have damage. A lot of cracks, a garage that is displaced, but most of all there is the shock.

A woman who lives across the street says she walked by a minute before the explosion. Her husband rushed home and realizes his wife was lucky. "When you see all those window frames lying here. Fortunately, the car that was in front of the garage still stopped a lot."

Stories

Darkness is already falling as more and more stories about the family are circulating. Neighbors had repeatedly complained to the municipality and police about unsafe situations. "The man was always messing around with gas cylinders in his garage, this had to go wrong sometime," says the neighbor.

He and other neighbors also cite an incident from a year ago, when the family had to leave the house after carbon monoxide poisoning. "But apparently the authorities are also powerless, because every time someone came to check, they made sure it was OK," Offermans said.

Arrest

The police also heard all the information and decided to detain the man during the day. 'Because of involvement in the fire,' is the official reading. The forensic investigators are also on the scene at that time to conduct investigations, such as an emphatic look at an LPG tank (see photo) that was in the garage. Possibly this is the cause of all the misery, but all will have to be revealed later.

In any case, the resident's arrest does not surprise the neighborhood. His wife and children have since moved elsewhere and neighbor Leon is in a hotel. "I can't live there for now, there are cracks in all the walls and the question is whether it can all be repaired anyway. Tomorrow we hope to hear more."