Wheatley locals welcome razing of blast-hit ‘eyesore’ buildings

Many locals are welcoming the demolition of three more buildings damaged by a August 2021 toxic gas explosion in downtown Wheatley.

Published Dec 15, 2023  •  3 minute read

The front of a building on Erie Street North in Wheatley comes crashing down Tuesday morning during demolition of three buildings damaged in an Aug. 21, 2021, toxic gas blast that rocked the downtown. (Ellwood Shreve/Chatham Daily News)

WHEATLEY – Many locals are welcoming the demolition of three more buildings damaged by a August 2021 toxic gas explosion in downtown Wheatley.

“Honestly speaking, I’m excited to see these buildings finally come down,” said Hilary Hodgson, owner of Lil Hil’s Coffee Shop, located behind the three Erie Street North buildings being demolished.

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“It’s been a very long time that we’ve had to drive through a disaster area,” she added.

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Hodgson said it has been “disheartening” to see the buildings, because it brings up memories of the blast.

The Aug. 26, 2021, explosion was linked to highly toxic hydrogen sulphide gas seeping up through the ground. It destroyed two buildings and damaged several others in this community about 45 kilometres southwest of Chatham, injuring 20 people. Officials, alerted to trouble by gas detectors, had cleared the area 90 minutes before.

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Chief building inspector Paul Lacina, who was onsite Tuesday for part of the demolition, said the toxic gas was not found in the buildings directly across from the blast site.

Asked if new construction will be allowed at this location, Lacina said, “There’s no restrictions, as of yet, that they can’t build here.”

In future, the process to build on the site will be “no different than any other project outside of Wheatley,” he said.

“It’s going to be nice to see things move ahead,” said John Urban, owner of  Cellar Door Wines, said, “It’s an eyesore right now. It will be nice to get them out of there.”

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Longtime Wheatley resident Terry Lobzun was there Tuesday to witness some of the demolition work. “We’re tired of looking at it, I’m glad something is happening,” he said.

While recognizing the structural issues caused by the blast, Lobzun believes the demolition could be heartbreaking for older residents more connected to the buildings’ history, while younger people likely see it as progress..

“I guess we all wonder, ‘What’s coming after this?’ ” said Lobzun, who expects whatever follows will be “long and drawn out.”

More than two years after the explosion, he doesn’t believe there is a firm plan in place and the municipality is still “learning as it goes along.”

Another longtime resident, who didn’t want his name used, believes the toxic gas is just going to keep coming up through the ground in the area.

“I think they’re just wasting their time,” he said.

His father told him a downtown building exploded in 1938, the man said. And he recalls, as a kid, seeing a gas well burning in an alley off Elm Street, near his family’s home. “And they paved over top of it.”

“Obviously, everybody would like to see (recovery) go a lot faster, but it is what it is,” said Jeff Bowman, who chairs the Wheatley Business Improvement Association. “I’m pretty optimistic about Wheatley, in general.”

“It’s sad to see what happened, but you’ve got to see the end product,” he added. “There’s going to be some good that comes out of this and we’re going to be bigger and better.”

Before the explosion, he said Wheatley was a high-growth area in Chatham-Kent with people moving in and a lot of new homes being built.

Noting there are new housing projects on the books, Bowman believes improved interest rates could spur some more growth.

“We’re in a good situation and it will even better when we can get some of these buildings out of the way and they can remedy the well situation,” he said.

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