A northwest suburban homeowner was injured and a section of his home blown away in an explosion Monday afternoon that appears to have been intentionally sparked.
People who live on MacArthur Drive in Buffalo Grove said everything was quiet until about 2:40 p.m. Monday. when police were rushing to an emergency call on reports of a man despondent and depressed.
When officers got to the home, they said the odor of natural gas was obvious. They tried to make contact with the homeowner, Buffalo Grove police spokesman Todd Kupsak said. As officers spotted the man in the home, there was an explosion, which took out the northwest side of the home.
The explosion sent furniture flying, and opened the side of the house and the eyes of neighbors who said they didn't realize anything was wrong with the homeowner.
Police said the homeowner jumped out of a window and onto the lawn. He was taken to Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights with non-life-threatening injuries.
No emergency personnel or neighbors were injured in the blast.
