MEDINA, Ohio — The explosion rocked Matthew Hodar from his sleep.
“I saw the fire downstairs so I ran upstairs to get my two cats,” he said. “I could only get one. When I went back up there my spare bedroom collapsed.”
Hodar lost everything, but escaped unharmed.
The Feb. 9 explosion that destroyed his and several units in the Medina Village Apartments killed 18-year-old Jacob Drake remains under investigation.
State Fire Marshals, fire investigators and workers from Columbia Gas returned to the complex Wednesday after a resident smelled natural gas. They have since discovered at least 63 units in the Spring Brook Road complex had some form of gas leak.
The findings made many residents uneasy and forced dozens from their homes. A representative at the apartment’s rental office confirmed Friday that management offered displaced families furnished apartments where they can stay as long as needed.
“They’re offering units to those who were displaced,” Hodar said. “I don’t know if I want to go back or stay at my parents for a year. It’s kind of hard to acquire what you had again.”
Columbia Gas combed Laurie Haas Matzelle’s apartment and found no signs of a leak, but her neighbors were not so fortunate. Officials posted an official warning on their door warning that investigators discovered a leak inside.
“These people are going on two days without heat and hot water,” she said. “I mean this is unacceptable.”
Matzelle said that picking up and moving, even temporarily to a hotel, would be difficult for her and her husband. She has a bag packed in case they need to leave in a hurry.
“It would be a big pain to relocate and find a hotel that accepts two cats,” she said. “I don’t want to have to go through the expense of getting a hotel. This is not my fault.”
Medina Building Services and Code Enforcement official Dan Gladish said Columbia Gas was instructed to inspect all of the buildings for leaks.
“Our building department and our fire department have worked relentlessly through this period to try to have as little interruption and as little inconvenience to the residents as possible because we serve them,” Medina Mayor Dennis Hanwell said.
When asked how 63 gas leaks could be overlooked, Gladish the leaks were so small that maintenance workers and tenants likely didn’t notice them.
“They were mostly small or concealed leaks,” he said. “A lot of these people didn’t realize they had these small little gas leaks.”
Officials have made no direct connection between the gas leaks and the explosion.
Officials didn’t want to take any risks in allowing affected residents to return until they could say with certainty that all the leaks are addressed. Safety of the residents is of the utmost importance, he added.
Contractors and maintenance workers from Integrity Realty Group, the company that owns Medina Village Apartments, could be seen in the complex working Friday.
Integrity Realty Group declined to comment. The company’s attorney, Thomas Cabral, did not return a call seeking comment Friday.
A message on the management office’s phone line says that there are about 20 contractors currently conducting repairs throughout the damaged parts of the apartment complex. Columbia Gas and city inspectors will have to clear all of the units before it can restore gas service to those apartments.
Officials have no estimation for how long that might take, or how long it will take for workers to complete the necessary repairs.
“We appreciate the patience of the residents as we work diligently to ensure their safety and the safety of the community,” Columbia Gas spokesman Bill Loomer said Friday.
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