A husband has filed a lawsuit accusing Nicor Gas of negligence for a gas-fueled explosion and fire that killed his wife, seriously injured his son and left their home completely destroyed in Wonder Lake.
Wonder Lake resident Dean L. Patnaude filed a three-count lawsuit complaint in McHenry County Circuit Court on Friday.
The suit was filed on behalf of Patnaude by Crystal Lake-based law firm Balke & Williams and names Northern Illinois Gas Company, known as Nicor Gas Company, as the defendant.
The complaint says that Patnaude, 76, and his wife, Sandra Patnaude, 59, lived at a house in the 7400 block of Birch Drive in Wonder Lake.
Nicor Gas delivered, maintained and managed natural gas service to their property.
A natural gas leak occurred and led to an explosion at the home on May 17, causing Sandra Patnaude’s death, the complaint said.
The complaint said Nicor was negligent in monitoring the gas service at the property, inadequately responded to complaints of leaking gas before the explosion, provided inadequate warning to residents in the area of the dangerous leaking natural gas and allowed the gas service to remain in an unsafe condition.
The Wonder Lake Fire Protection District and McHenry County Sheriff’s Office responded around 7:50 p.m. that day and encountered an active house fire with significant damage and multiple injured victims, according to Wonder Lake Fire Chief Matt Yegge.
Firefighters immediately initiated both fire suppression operations and emergency medical care for the injured, Yegge said.
The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated to the box alarm to bring additional fire and EMS resources to the scene due to the severity of the incident.
Firefighters located an adult female victim dead at the scene, Yegge said, adding that there were two other victims still alive.
McHenry County Coroner Dr. Michael Rein said last week that his office has not positively identified the deceased victim yet due to the severity of the burns and further testing will be needed.
Court records, along with Jason Cynowa, a resident of Wonder Lake since 1977, identified the woman suspected to have died as Sandra Patnaude.
The two surviving victims were Dean Patnaude and a 28-year-old man, the sheriff’s office said.
Cynowa told Lake and McHenry County Scanner that the younger man was the couple’s son.
He called the incident the “most tragic thing” and a “horrific accident.”
“I have known these people for over 30 years and they are very good people and have been members of our community for probably as long as my family has been here,” Cynowa said.
Cynowa said the family are customers of his business. He created a GoFundMe account to help the family going forward and it has raised over $8,500.
“My customers seem to always get close enough to me like friends and family. Dean works in our area almost every day and so do I. Just very, very good-hearted people,” he said.
A LifeNet medical helicopter was requested to land nearby at Wonder Lake Fire Station #1.
An ambulance transported the 28-year-old male victim to the landing zone and transferred them to the flight crew.
The helicopter flew the man to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, which has a specialized burn center, in critical condition, Yegge said.
The husband was initially transported by ambulance to Northwestern Medicine Hospital in McHenry. Sheriff’s officials said he suffered serious injuries.
A LifeNet medical helicopter later transferred him from Northwestern Medicine Hospital to Loyola University Medical Center for further treatment.
An autopsy was performed on the female victim and toxicology testing is pending, Rein said.
The explosion and subsequent fire also caused damage to two neighboring houses.
Firefighters worked to contain the fire and prevent further extension, Yegge said.
The house that exploded was left completely leveled and destroyed, with large pieces of the home thrown around the area. The home’s detached garage remained standing.
Dean Patnaude, who is the administrator of his wife’s estate, is seeking an unspecified amount in damages from Nicor in excess of $50,000, the lawsuit complaint said.
The complaint said the man suffered “severe and permanent injuries” and was “hindered and prevented from attending to his usual duties and affairs and has lost the value of that time; he suffered great pain and anguish, both in mind and body, and will in the future continue to suffer, he suffered and will continue great disabilities and an inability to enjoy a normal life and will in the future continue to suffer, and he has further expended and became liable for large sums of money for medical care and services endeavoring to become healed and cured of his injuries.”
Thomas Koch, who lives a half-mile away from the scene, told Lake and McHenry County Scanner that he heard the explosion, which sounded like a “massive boom” that shook the area.
“Shortly afterward, I could hear nonstop sirens as fire trucks and ambulances continued heading toward the scene. Seeing the large flames and thick smoke from that distance was honestly unbelievable,” he said.
Numerous other residents in Wonder Lake also reported hearing the explosion. “It shook our whole house 2.5 blocks away and all the neighbors felt it too,” one resident said.
Other residents who live in the area said they thought a vehicle had struck their house based on how loud the explosion was.
“We are two blocks away and it was raining paper on fire and a whole bunch of ashes. A bunch of mortgage papers,” another resident said.
Yegge said he could not confirm whether there was more than one explosion.
“The Wonder Lake Fire Protection District extends its deepest condolences to all those affected by this tragic event. We would also like to express our sincere appreciation to our mutual aid partners who responded and provided critical assistance,” the fire chief said.
Investigators from MABAS Division 5, the Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) are jointly conducting an investigation.
Yegge said he has been in the fire service for 30 years and has only seen a few incidents of this magnitude. “Very rare, very rare for you to see fire scenes like this.”
An initial court date in the lawsuit has been set for August 21 for a conference scheduling hearing.