Trying to Kill Herself, Blast Survivor Says

A 53-year-old woman who was burned in an explosion that destroyed her Normal Heights home told authorities she filled the house with gas and set a fire intending to commit suicide, a Fire Department official said Friday.

Barbara Martin, who was listed in serious condition at UC San Diego Medical Center with second- and third-degree burns, told officials that she was in despair over financial problems and had attempted suicide, Fire Capt. Jeff Carle said.

The explosion occurred at noon Thursday after Martin turned on a kitchen stove and set a small fire in a hall closet, igniting gas that had accumulated in the house and the attic, Carle said.

Martin’s son, Scott, who also lives in the house in the 4400 block of Wilson Street but was at work at the time of the explosion, corroborated his mother’s statement that she was troubled by financial woes, Carle said. Interviews with friends and other relatives supported her story, he said.

After the explosion, a neighbor discovered a dazed Martin propping herself up on a kitchen counter and helped her outside.

Howard Sloan, 40, a pest control employee who was working at an adjacent apartment building when the explosion occurred, suffered shock and abdominal pains and is in stable condition at Mercy Hospital, a spokesman said.

Martin has not been arrested for the explosion, which caused more than $80,000 damage to the house and $3,000 damage to surrounding apartments.

The force of the blast lifted the roof off the house, blew out almost all the windows and carried a 100-square-foot utility room connected to the building about 10 feet away.

The Fire Department is turning over the case to the district attorney, who will investigate the incident and decide if arson charges will be brought against Martin, authorities said.