By: Lydia Crawley
The Parsons Advocate
Friday, July 3rd, just before 10 a.m, the 8800 block of Holly Meadows Road in St. George was rocked by a house explosion. The gas leak fueled explosion destroyed the residence and injured the occupant, Diana Wyatt, a female in her 60’s and left her dog, Axel, in the care of a local veterinarian, according to reports.
Tucker County 911 reported an active call of a structure fire at 8839 Holly Meadows Road in the St. George area of Parsons near Academy Lane and Location Road. The caller was reported to be in a safe place. However, the call was dispatched as meeting the criteria for a “Priority 1 Call,” meaning it was an emergency situation involving an immediate threat to human life or severe physical injury, requiring the fastest possible response.
Parsons Volunteer Fire Department, along with Thomas and Davis VFD and Leading Creek VFD responded to the incident, as well as the Tucker County Sheriff’s Department and the West Virginia Fire Marshal’s Office. The woman’s injuries required the need of the landing zone at the St. George Medical Clinic for Healthnet to land for evacuation. Command at the scene did advise at the time that it was a natural gas explosion with debris thrown 30 to 40 feet from the scene.
Wyatt was taken to Pittsburgh for treatment. As of July 4th, Wyatt’s relative Christal Marshall has reported through Facebook that Wyatt is “doing well and in good spirits” and “still has a long road of recovery ahead.” Marshall said that there is no word on Wyatt’s two cats. Wyatt thanked friends and the community and asked for kindness towards her family following online speculation surrounding the explosion.
An account has been set up for donations at Citizens Bank of WV in Parsons.
