Former propane worker charged in Virginia house blast that killed a firefighter

Officials say a former employee of a propane supplier has been charged in the death of a volunteer firefighter who died while responding to a house explosion in Virginia

Virginia House Explosion (The Washington Post)

A former employee of a propane supplier has been charged in the death of a volunteer firefighter who died while responding to a house explosion in Virginia in February, officials said Tuesday.

Roger Bentley was indicted Monday on charges of involuntary manslaughter and unlawful release of hazardous materials, Loudoun County Fire and Rescue said in a statement.

Bentley also was charged with failure to maintain required records of an unauthorized discharge of hazardous materials, and unlawful failure to control or mitigate the unauthorized discharge of hazardous materials.

Online court records did not show if Bentley had a lawyer to speak on his behalf about the charges Tuesday.

The house explosion in Sterling led to the death of volunteer firefighter Trevor Brown, significant injuries to 11 first responders and $2.5 million in damages, Loudoun County officials said. Brown was married with three children and had been with the county firefighting services since 2016, officials said.

Firefighters arrived at the home in the Washington, D.C., suburb to investigate a report about a gas smell, officials said. They discovered a 500-gallon underground propane tank with a leak on the side of the residence, officials said.

Shortly after they arrived, the house exploded and burst into flames, with multiple mayday calls coming from the firefighters trapped inside. Crews rushed in to try to rescue them from the debris that covered them.

Two people inside the house were escorted out before the explosion and suffered minor injuries from the blast.

Investigators determined that the explosion was caused by the leak, the fire department's statement said. Uncontained propane migrated into and around the structure and was ignited by something that hasn't been identified, the statement said.

Bentley is a former employee of Southern States Cooperative, Inc.-Leesburg-Fairfax Petroleum Service. In a statement provided to WTOP-TV, the company said it is fully cooperating with investigations into the explosion.

“Based on our own internal inquiry into the incident and an extensive review of our safety protocols and training, particularly as they relate to the handling of propane consistent with the industry’s Energy Compliance Manual, we have made what we believe to be appropriate personnel changes in the region and are moving forward with a renewed commitment toward ensuring that our procedures and training are rigorous and sound,” the company's statement said.