House explodes near Highland

A home at 1033 Illinois 160 in Highland exploded Sunday afternoon. No one was injured.

Owners Becky and Jay Rock had planned to demolish the home that had been vacant for about a year.

Dave Thole, Becky’s father, said the Rock’s had planned to keep the house warm enough to avoid a pipe bursting but forgot there was an open gas line in the basement.

The house was not insured, and Thole said there would be no investigation.

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This story was originally published December 18, 2016 at 2:02 PM with the headline "House explodes near Highland."