House filled with explosives burned

Associated Press

ESCONDIDO, Calif.

In the end, there were no big explosions. No flames leaping from house to house. Just residents watching anxiously as a house packed with explosives in their neighborhood went up in flames.

All of it, thankfully, without a hitch.

“I feel better,” said Pat MacQueen, 76, standing on a porch Thursday as reddish-orange flames rose into the sky about a block away.

The blaze devoured the ranch-style house filled with so much homemade explosive material that authorities said they had no choice but to burn it to the ground. It popped and crackled. At one point, a deep boom from the fire echoed through the neighborhood.

“Oh, that’s scary,” said MacQueen, who moved to the San Diego suburb about 11 years ago.

Though the immediate safety threat had passed, MacQueen and other residents were still haunted by the man who rented the house — George Jakubec. How did he amass so much explosive material, and what did he plan to do with it? Investigators are still trying to find those answers as Jakubec sits in jail on bomb-making and bank- robbery charges.

Their immediate concern, however, disintegrated in less than an hour.

The plan was to stoke a fire so hot — at least 1,800 degrees — that it would neutralize the volatile chemicals before they could cause major explosions. Crews built a 16-foot firewall and covered it with fire resistant gel to protect the closest home at least a dozen feet away.

Firefighters and ambulances were on hand, just in case.

The fire began with puffs of smoke that rapidly grew larger, thicker and blacker. It billowed up through holes in the roof before flames overtook the house. The smoke rose about a half-mile into the sky.

The inferno was shown live on cable news networks and over the Internet.

Onlookers snapped pictures with cameras and cell phones. They “oohed and ahhed” over popping noises that authorities said were likely hand grenades and ammunition.