SITKA — Authorities are investigating reports of an illegal dynamite blast in Sitka that caused damage to one home on the Fourth of July.
Police had received calls about the explosion at Granite Creek quarry Monday evening. City Administrator Mark Gorman said he received an email from a property owner the following day reporting that her home’s foundation and walls were cracked by the shock, The Sitka Sentinel reported.
Police also received a report that a contractor had set off the explosives but didn’t have the proper licensing to do so.
Police Chief Sheldon Schmitt said officers and the Sitka Fire Department have spoken with the suspect and worked to ensure the dynamite was disposed of properly.
“We’re continuing to investigate, we’re trying to make sure the explosives are secure,” Schmitt said. “We want to make sure they followed the proper steps, we’re making sure they jumped through the hoops like they should’ve.”
Gorman said the city is working to determine if it was “a proper detonation” and that “public safety is the highest concern.”
The blast, which Gorman said occurred on city property, was heard or felt up to a mile on either side of the quarry.
