EMA to assess cost of explosion

By Steve Mocarsky smocarsky@timesleader.comStaff Writer

EXETER – Financial assistance in the form of low-interest loans might be offered to property owners affected by the home explosion at Penn Avenue and Memorial Street on Saturday.

Representatives from the Luzerne County Emergency Management Agency and the state Emergency Management Agency will conduct a preliminary damage assessment Tuesday of properties affected by the explosion. The appraisal will determine eligibility for Small Business Administration low-interest loan programs to help residential property owners and businesses recover, county EMA director Stephen Bekanich said Sunday in a press release.

The assessment will be conducted from 2 to 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Exeter Borough Ambulance Building, 1091 Wyoming Ave., Exeter.

Residents and business owners whose properties sustained damage as a result of the explosion are asked to report to the ambulance building to meet with county and state officials and will be asked for the following information:

• The dollar value of the damaged property

• The estimated dollar amount of damages to the home or business

• The estimated dollar amount of damages to personal belongings (for example: clothing, vehicles, etc.)

• Whether or not the property was insured and, if it was, the approximate amount of insurance coverage on the property.

Affected property owners should keep in mind that the assessment is preliminary and all of the requested information can be estimated.

If the area is determined to be eligible for assistance, more exact numbers would be needed when affected residents or business owners apply for the loan program, Bekanich said.

The explosion that leveled a house Saturday afternoon critically injured the owner, damaged the neighboring John F. Kennedy Elementary School and rattled buildings up to two miles away.

Homeowner David Lamoreaux was airlifted to the Lehigh Valley Hospital burn unit after being pulled out of the garage behind his two-story home at 58 Penn Ave. and Memorial Street, Exeter Police Sgt. Leonard Galli had said.

Lamoureaux’s wife, Debbie, and two daughters were not home at the time of the blast.

Eileen Dewey, who lives two houses away, said she and her husband, Gregory, were on their back deck when they saw smoke. She checked to see what was going on when she said she saw David Lamoureaux spraying what appeared to be gasoline around the home.

The Lamoureauxs were having marital problems, according to Dewey, who called 911 to report domestic disputes on three occasions last week.

Exeter Police Chief John McNeil had said state police are conducting a criminal investigation, but no details were available on Saturday.

Borough police did not return messages seeking comment on Sunday. A trooper at the state police barracks in Wyoming said state police are responsible only for the fire investigation.

A representative of Lehigh Valley Hospital said on Sunday she had no available information on Lamoureaux.

IF YOU GO

What: Preliminary Damage Assessment for properties affected by the Penn Avenue home explosion

When: 2 to 7 p.m. Tuesday

Where: Exeter Borough Ambulance Building, 1091 Wyoming Ave., Exeter.

Steve Mocarsky, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 970-7311.