3 Killed in Explosion in Ski Resort Bank

A mysterious explosion leveled a two-story brick bank building in a central Colorado ski resort Tuesday, killing three people and injuring 14 others, authorities said.

More than 600 volunteers from throughout the area converged on the tiny community of Crested Butte, 120 miles southwest of Denver, to help rescue survivors at the Crested Butte State Bank. Many used their hands to dig through the rubble of the bank that exploded shortly after it opened at 9 a.m., said Bob Gillen, a spokesman for Crested Butte Mountain Resort.

“There was a loud explosion, the roof came up off the building, the walls collapsed and the only thing left standing was the vault,” Gillen said. “The explosion blew out windows in cars and buildings nearby.”

The bank had no natural gas line. Authorities said they were investigating the possibility of a bomb or a methane gas explosion. Crested Butte is located near coal deposits, which can create methane gas buildups.

Tom Yates, police chief at nearby Gunnison, leaned toward the methane gas theory, but said: “I don’t rule out anything at this point.”

“My bomb technician on the scene said he’d been there four hours and found no evidence of explosives,” Yates said. “He said there was a possible buildup of methane gas in the crawl space under the first floor of the bank.”

Crested Butte Police Chief Hank Smith said two restaurants had received bomb threats over the week, and one of them was evacuated. More than two dozens agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the FBI were dispatched to the community of 1,000 people Tuesday afternoon.

Rescue efforts were hampered by falling snow, which limited visibility and prevented victims from being airlifted from the scene to local hospitals and clinics, authorities said.

“The whole town turned out to help and they were frantically digging through bricks, concrete, wood and snow with their bare hands,” said Bryan Barrett, 29, who owns a pizza restaurant across the street. “I’m proud of this little town. It really pulled together.”

Mark Reaman, a photographer for the Chronicle & Pilot newspaper, said “the whole town would suddenly become silent, stopping to see if they could hear someone. It was the most eerie thing I’ve ever heard. Luckily, many times they found someone who was still alive.”

The dead were identified as bank employees Jade Woelk, Donna Smith and Monica Henning. Their ages were not available.

Six of the injured were driven by ambulance to Gunnison, about 30 miles to the south. Another three people were airlifted to St. Mary’s Hospital in Grand Junction, 90 miles to the west. The rest were treated at the scene for minor injuries and then released.