Two people who were in the house at 341 Haskell St. had to climb over pieces of walls and other wreckage to get out the front door.

“They’re very lucky they got out,” said Fort Dodge Fire Chief Steve Hergenreter said.

He said they were treated for burns and transported to UnityPoint Health — Trinity Regional Medical Center. An update on their conditions was not available Thursday.

The people were asleep in the living room in the front of the house. Because the blast was centered in the rear of the house, the living room was “probably the only survivable space,” Hergenreter said.

-Messenger photo by Bill Shea

The explosion and fire were reported at 11:36 p.m. by a man driving by on nearby North Third Street.

When firefighters arrived, flames were shooting out of all four sides of the house.

A kind of water cannon atop a fire truck was used to quickly spray a few hundred gallons of water on the fire. Firefighters then moved in with three hoselines to extinguish it.

As they extinguished the flames, firefighters found that the back wall was blown about 20 feet from the house, landing against a hillside in the backyard.

“It was a natural gas leak somewhere in the house,” Hegrenreter said. “There was some kind of gas leak and it found an ignition source.”

-Messenger photo by Bill Shea
Fort Dodge firefighters move in to attack a fire at 341 Haskell St. Wednesday night.

The house is owned by Randy J. Cerwick, according to online records of the Webster County Assessor’s Office. It was built in 1901.

Fort Dodge firefighters were assisted by city police and Webster County sheriff’s deputies.

The incident remains under investigation by the Fire Department, the state Fire Marshal’s Office, and MidAmerican Energy.

-Messenger photo by Bill Shea
A stream of water, left, from a monitor atop a Fort Dodge fire truck hits the flames that destroyed a house at 341 Haskell St. late Wednesday night.