REDDING, Calif. — Days after evacuating dozens of people living nearby, sheriff's deputies in far Northern California on Sunday successfully incinerated a mobile home whose resident had amassed more than 60 pounds of explosive material.
The chemicals, gunpowder, primers for firearms cartridges and other materials found in the house in a sparsely populated area of Redding this month made it too unstable for deputies to even walk on the property without risking a blast, Shasta County sheriff's Lt. Dave Kent said.
Authorities had been waiting for the weather to clear before incinerating the home, and Sunday's clear skies provided good conditions. It could be as long as 24 hours before authorities can go onto the property to check the area, and once they determine it is safe, evacuees will be let back in, Kent said.
Authorities found the combustible material on Feb. 6 upon responding to an explosion at the home that took off a man's hand.
The resident, D. Ray East, 63, lost his left hand above the wrist, broke his right elbow and injured his right eye in the blast, Kent said.
East told investigators he was making fuel for model rockets.
