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Police ID victim of Columbia City explosion as Kendallville man

One month after an explosion in Columbia City that killed a man, Indiana State Police have released their findings on what happened as well as an official identification of the victim.

Loss of life
A warehouse explosion rocked Columbia City the morning of May 22. One person was killed and two were reported injured, police said.

Police identified the man who was found in the remains of the building after it burned as Zachery Sparkman, 34. The Indiana State Police release issued June 22 states Sparkman was of LaOtto, but an obituary submitted by his family to KPC Media Group in May states he was from Kendallville.

Zach Sparkman

Authorities had not previously identified the victim while the Whitley County coroner continued its investigation.

Police had said about a week after explosion when Sparkman’s family was preparing services for him that it had not received a confirmation from the coroner and therefore could not officially identify the victim at that time.

Due to the severity of the fire, the coroner’s office had to send out DNA testing to the Indiana State Police Fort Wayne Regional Laboratory to confirm the identity of the victim, which accounted for the delay in the identification.

The manner and cause of death have not yet been officially released. Information that will come from the official autopsy report is pending with the Northeast Indiana Forensic Center in Fort Wayne.

After the monthlong investigation, officials have concluded that the explosion was likely sparked by an unintentional ignition of a natural gas source.

“We completed the scene examination in Columbia City,” the Indiana Fire Marshal’s Office stated in June 22’s release. “We examined all of the natural gas lines in the building and tested them. Several of the connections were found with minor leaks in them probably from the explosion and fire. A gas valve located along the back wall was examined and revealed the most significant leak in the building. This valve was near the victim’s location. The victim was a known smoker. No evidence was found indicating a manual intentional manipulation of the buildings natural gas system occurred prior to the explosion. All of the evidence gathered indicates the explosion was caused by an unintentional natural gas leak ignited by an independent ignition source.”

Shortly before 9 a.m. May 22, officers from multiple police agencies and numerous fire departments responded to the building explosion at 515 N. Line St., Columbia City. Arriving first responders found a warehouse structure located on this property fully engulfed in flames.

There were three adults reported in or around the building at the time of the initial explosion. Two of those adults were able to escape the building with only minor injuries. One man, Sparkman, remained trapped inside and was unable to be rescued due to the size and nature of the fire. There was significant damage to several adjacent business and residential structures to the south and west of the warehouse.

The two men who escaped the building reportedly were in the front of the structure preparing the space for an incoming pet shop. The building contained two separate areas, a commercial space up front toward the road and a taller, segregated garage area at the back of the property.

Firefighters weren’t able to locate and retrieve Sparkman until approximately 2:30 p.m. after the flames had been knocked down.

Sparkman is survived by a wife and four children.

He was a 2005 graduate of East Noble High School and a truck driver with MetalX and Heavy Metal Haulers. Sparkman was a past volunteer firefighter for LaOtto and Avilla departments and was a member of the Black Pistons Motorcycle Club in Columbia City.

Services for Sparkman were held May 29 and he was buried in Orange Cemetery near Brimfield.