CLAYPOOL – A Claypool woman is dead and her husband is in critical condition in a Fort Wayne Hospital after their house exploded Thursday afternoon near Claypool. Emergency responders who first arrived at the home in the 4600 block of south County Road 450W shortly before 4 p.m. found the remnants of a house amid a large amount of debris and heard a man trapped under rubble, according to a news release issued by the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department Thursday night. Firemen from Burket, Claypool, and Warsaw responded and pulled the man, identified as Larry G. Justis, 67, out from under a two-foot pile of rubble. He was airlifted to a Fort Wayne hospital. and was in critical condition at Parkview Regional Medical Center, Fort Wayne this morning. His wife, Kay A. Justis, 68, was also found under rubble and died at the scene. Kosciusko County Coroner Tony Ciriello said an autopsy is scheduled for later today at the Northeast Indiana Forensic Center, Fort Wayne, to assist in determining the cause of death. The explosion blew parts of the house, including a large amount of insulation across the entire lot and into a small pond behind the home. Insulation could be seen strewn up high in nearby trees and a dozen chickens in the yard remained alive and inside their cages after the explosion. Ciriello said the investigation is still ongoing with law enforcement and fire officials who have yet to determine the cause of the explosion, which included virtually no sign of a fire. Fire officials from Burket/Seward Township Fire Department said officials with the Indiana State Fire Marshal’s Office were called to the scene to assist with the investigation to determine the cause, police said. Fred Vining, a neighbor who lives a quarter mile from the scene, said he and his nephew, Jacob Jennings, were in his house when they heard a loud explosion. “I was in front of the fan reading a magazine and my nephew was watching television when we heard an explosion louder than a firework,” Fred said. Vining and his nephew got in his vehicle and they looked for smoke, but didn’t see any. “The neighbor who lives next door to the Justis’s told them there had been at explosion at the Justis’s house,” Vining said. Vining described the Justis’s as “nice church-going people.” Vining has lived in his home for 23 years, and said the Justis’s have lived in their home longer. He said they are both retired. Kay worked at the New Paris Post Office and Larry worked for Zimmer.
Staff Reporter Jennifer Peryam contributed to this report.
