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Photo by: Whitney Kidd
“The floor just tears up, and all of our couches hit the ceiling. It throws us out, and I’m halfway out of the house, looking through what used to be a whole wall that just gave out. Then I’m just running through the open spot. I didn’t even have shoes on. I’m just running in my socks. I just jumped out. It was maybe a three-foot or four-foot jump from the ledge down, and I just started running. I had no clue what was going on. It was like shell shock. I was just running and I didn’t even know where I was running to. I got three houses away and just, like, fell in the grass and put my hair out because it was on fire still,” Kolby Gimmeson said.
Gimmeson was one of three students in the house on 7th street while it exploded on March 19 due to a nearby natural gas leak.
“We were all for some reason on a different couch, just sprawled out enjoying the movie,” Gimmeson said. “I went to the bathroom, came back, sat down and was kind of like, ‘It smells really weird in here.’ At first it smelled like fresh diced onions, at least that is what it smelled like to me, then after 10 minutes of kind of noticing it a little bit, it came a little more pungent. Now, it smelled like something rotten was going on. My dad works for an oil company, so I definitely know what gas smells like, but it didn’t smell like straight gas, it was mixed with something since it came through the sewer line.”
Seconds after he noticed that the smell got worse, the house exploded.
“There was so much fear and danger, but you had no clue where to direct it. It was just like all around you,” Gimmeson said. “I was in this ball of just fear, and I had no clue what I was even scared of. It was the most danger or fear you’ve ever felt, but, like, you’re not sure of it. Usually, you have danger or something and you’re like, ‘I’m scared of that, I’m scared of this, or that’s coming toward me, but this was everywhere.”
After the explosion, Gimmeson spent a day and a half in St. Mary’s Hospital before requesting to be released early since his pain was not bad at that time. His nerve endings were fried, leaving him somewhat pain-free until they began to regrow.
“Now the pain is really starting to come, because I’m getting nerves back and my skin is just so tender,” Gimmeson said.
Gimmeson has burns on his face, arms and legs. He is done with doctor visits but has to stay well moisturized with a pharmaceutical-strength burn ointment and can only have limited exposure to the sun.
“I get hot flashes and can’t be in the sun for more than like a minute or my skin just starts radiating and my hand will shake from hurting so much,” Gimmeson said. “I’ve never had such a sensitive pain.”
Immediately following the explosion, Gimmeson and the other victims were given a hotel room by the Red Cross until permanent arrangements could be found. He has since moved into a house that was found with assistance from the Grand Junction Fire Department, and donations from around the valley have helped make the house liveable.
CMU was also very compassionate to those affected and replaced books and school supplies, offered on-campus housing and dining and informing professors of the student’s involvement, among other things.
“It’s one thing to return to class, but it’s a whole other thing to return to class without your laptop, without your calculator, without your textbooks, without your notes. If I put myself in those shoes, I think that would make life pretty tough on me,” Vice President for Student Services John Marshall said. “So we [CMU] certainly would want to help any student that is in a situation where they have lost all of their possessions. The institution has the capacity to help a student that is really in a tough spot like that, so we can at least improve the process of putting things back together.”
Gimmeson was one of nine people that were affected and one of two that spent a considerable length of time hospitalized, but was the only one that could be reached for comment. He was very grateful for all of the support that has been given to him and the others affected by the tragedy but does, however, have concerns about the way the incident was handled and has sought legal council.
The City of Grand Junction was not able to comment on Gimmeson’s legal action due to a current investigation.
tfife@mavs.coloradomesa.edu
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