VIDEO: Monday marks five years since the explosion in Farmington that devastated the community and killed Fire Capt. Michael Bell.
Six firefighters and LEAP maintenance manager Larry Lord were seriously injured in the blast on Sept. 16, 2019. Firefighters were called to the LEAP building on Route 2 in Farmington at 8:07 a.m. that day for a propane smell in the building. Soon after firefighters arrived and began to investigate, there was an explosion that leveled the building. The injured Farmington firefighters were Fire Chief Terry Bell, Capt. Timothy D. Hardy, Capt. Scott Baxter, Firefighter Theodore Baxter, Firefighter Joseph Hastings and Deputy Fire Chief Clyde Ross.
Lord was hailed as a hero for evacuating LEAP employees before the building exploded. He received burns on over 80% of his body and spent several months in the hospital.