A year after the Whitehorse explosion, victims remember

One year after the explosion that took the life of a person and swept away a house on November 14, 2023, residents of the Riverdale neighborhood in Whitehorse, Yukon, speak out about the impact the event still has on their lives .

A little before 5:30 that night, Linda Gould got up to go to the bathroom. Next to her in bed slept her husband, Dave Gould.

As she stood in the bathroom, her life was suddenly turned upside down by an explosion.

The explosion was deafening and the ceiling fell on him. She managed to get out of the house, barefoot in the snow and in shock, but without any physical injury.

Her husband was not so lucky: the explosion destroyed the bedroom, killing him instantly. The house they built and got married in was destroyed in seconds.

My heart is broken, and I don’t know if I can ever heal it.

He didn’t deserve to die like that. We didn’t even have time to say goodbye.

What had just exploded that morning was the house next door.

The explosion was so strong that it was recorded by Earthquakes Canada in Whitehorse. All that remained of this house was a pile of debris.

Dave Gould was the only victim of this tragedy; a miracle, considering the force of the explosion and the extent of the damage. The owner of the house that exploded, Tim Preston, emerged from the rubble alive.

The latter did not respond to the interview request from CBC. Earlier this week, two charges were filed against him for contravening the Yukon Gas Appliances Act for installing a gas appliance without a permit.

Houses still under repair

After the explosion, several families had the difficult task of evaluating whether it was possible to save their homes damaged by the explosion as winter set in.

Michael McIsaac and his wife, Josefine, live across the street. The blast from the explosion shattered their walls, but also shattered the windows and their frames.

Since then, workers have opened the walls to assess the damage to the structure. The family was unable to enter the house until the summer.

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It was a very sad experience. Seeing the skeleton of his house was a little unsettlingargues Michael McIsaac.

Besides the significant expense, he says the incident also took a toll on their mental health, although therapy has since helped.

There are still times when we are sleeping and the house makes a noise, or the snow suddenly falls from the roof, and it suddenly wakes us up, thinking that something has happened.he emphasizes.

With his wife and their new baby, born this year, he should be able to return to their house in the Riverdale neighborhood in 2025.

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Several houses still have their windows boarded up, and the three residences adjacent to the one that exploded are still wrapped in plastic sheets. A large vacant lot now replaces Tim Preston’s house and that of the Gould family.

Linda Gould had what remained of her house on Bates Street torn down and sold the land. The idea of ​​rebuilding over 40 years of memories, and where her husband lost his life, was too painful for her.

Only a few family photos and her wedding ring were saved from the rubble.

I’m just trying to get back to the basics of life, to find my faith and my humanityshe said, specifying that it’s difficult.

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She remembers that the last night she spent with her husband was silent. Although excited to celebrate their nephew’s birthday the next day, the couple received the bad news that one of their best friends would soon be taken off life support.

Just before going to bed, the two spouses had discussed the fact that they were going to miss their friend. Dave Gould then gave his wife a hug.

He looked me in the eyes and said: “My darling, we never know what tomorrow has in store for us,” she recalls. We now know what the next day brought.

With information from Jackie Hong