Two Hurt In House Explosion

A mother and her adult son were hurt when an explosion happened on Tuesday afternoon near Cascade. The Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office says emergency crews were called about 3 to a home on north Cascade Road. According to a sheriff’s report, 79-year-old Joyce McMullen, and her 57-year-old son Michael, were home at the time of the explosion. Both had to be taken to a Dubuque hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Officials say the explosion and fire were caused by a gas leak in a vehicle that was stored in the garage. The vehicle was removed from the garage, but fumes had seeped into the basement. Those gas fumes were likely ignited by a water heater pilot light. Authorities estimate the fire caused more than $250-thousand dollars’ worth of damage.