LISBON — A Wells Hollow Road, Wellsville family seriously injured two years ago when their home exploded filed a lawsuit recently in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court against the propane company which had just made a delivery to the property.

Homeowner Charles Ammon, who lived there with Catherine Powell and her daughter, Preslie, filed the negligence claim, along with Powell on behalf of herself and Preslie. Erie Insurance Exchange, which provided Ammon’s homeowner’s insurance and Erie Insurance Company, which provided the coverage for two vehicles damaged on the property, also filed claims as plaintiffs.

The defendants included Eichler LP Gas, Inc., doing business as Eichler Propane, Inc., Eichler Local LP Gas Dealer and Eichler LP Gas, care/of Gary Eichler Sr., Lisbon Road, Salem, Gary Eichler, Lisbon Road, Salem and Galen Brandt, Speidel Road, East Rochester, along with four John Does described as employees of Eichler. Brandt was identified as a propane technician and the delivery driver to the Ammon home the day of the incident.

According to the lawsuit, a massive propane explosion occurred on Aug. 15, 2023 within hours after Eichler Propane provided propane delivery services to the Ammon home. The explosion severely and permanently injured Ammon, Powell and the juvenile, destroyed the home and its contents and destroyed two vehicles parked outside.

According to the sequence of events detailed in the lawsuit document, the family came home from a weekend camping trip on Aug. 13, 2023 and found there was no hot water. Ammon checked the propane tank and it was empty. On Aug. 14, 2023, he went to Eichler Propane and indicated he had no hot water and was out of propane. He was told a new delivery would be made by the following Friday. The next day, Aug. 15, 2023, Eichler Propane through Brandt and other employees delivered propane to the property while the only person home was the juvenile.

The lawsuit alleged that despite a gauge on the tank showing a lack of propane, the defendants “failed to diagnose and properly detect that the propane had run out as a result of a leak in the external distribution system between the first and second stage regulators.”

The lawsuit alleged that the Eichler Propane employees failed to properly diagnose and test the system and failed to conduct and document a property Residential System Safety Inspection after the interruption of service event. They filled the tank and left.

Hours passed with propane migrating from the yard line and accumulating in the basement of the Ammon home. When Powell and Ammon returned home, Ammon went into the basement when a massive explosion suddenly occurred, resulting in the total collapse of the home. The juvenile was “jettisoned from the second floor of the Ammon home into the yard, with Catherine Powell in the upper floor that had collapsed; and with Charles Ammon trapped in the basement while the house was burning.”

Ammon suffered severe burns, Powell suffered a fractured pelvis, fractured left heel and fractured left hip and the juvenile, Preslie, suffered a fractured pelvis, fractured vertabrae and lacerations. All three suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. They’re seeking monetary damages, along with the insurance companies for claims paid out.

When the explosion happened, fire departments from Highlandtown, Wellsville, West Point and Liverpool Township responded. At the time, Highlandtown Volunteer Fire Chief Jeremiah Cole said neighbors pulled the man from the basement and the woman from a window. The girl, listed as 14 years old at the time, was thrown from the house and found in the yard.

The lawsuit made several claims of failures by the company, noting that “had the property procedures been followed, the significant leak in the propane system would have been identified and the explosion would not have occurred.”

The case has been assigned to Judge Megan Bickerton.

mgreier@mojonews.com