Explosion in Panaca

The house in Panaca where two bombs detonated the evening of July 13. Photo by Rose Lanigan.

Glenn Franklin Jones, the man who died in explosions in Panaca on July 13, was investigated for two incidents in 2015 involving morphine at Grover C. Dils Medical Center, the Associated Press reported.

Jones, 59, had his nursing license revoked.

He last lived in Arizona and was identified by the Clark County Coroner as the man who died in the explosions.

“Mr. Jones died from a gunshot wound of the head,” Coroner John Fudenberg said in a statement. “Blunt force injuries from the explosion also contributed to his death, which has been ruled a suicide. We believe Mr. Jones shot himself after igniting the explosive device(s).”

Fudenberg’s office continues working with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office in its investigation.

Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval on Friday met with first responders who came to the scene of deadly explosions that occurred Wednesday evening in Panaca.

Sandoval also surveyed the site of the blasts and attended a community meeting in the afternoon at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gymnasium. He said he was “grateful for the leadership Lincoln County, Nevada commissioners and selfless sacrifice and bravery of the first responders.”

When speaking with the media Sandoval said, “It is unimaginable what this community and this family are going through.”

After a day-long sweep by state, local and national law enforcement of about three blocks surrounding the site of the two blasts, residents were allowed to return to their homes. Damage to surrounding properties was extensive.

Residents of a Panaca home Wednesday night were warned to leave shortly before a pair of bombs detonated in what might have been a revenge attack by a disgruntled former hospital employee, killing one person and injuring another.

Lincoln County Sheriff Kerry Lee said all five people that lived at the residence were accounted for during a press briefing Thursday afternoon.

(Audio) First News Briefing – July 14, 2016

Several community members said the bomber was Glenn Jones and that he was the one killed. Jones formerly lived in Panaca and was a nurse at Grover C. Dils Medical Center in Caliente. He had recently been fired from the job and moved away.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that authorities were working to safely deal with a large amount of explosive material found in a motor home in Kingman, Ariz. that apparently belonged to Jones.

Lee confirmed that his department is working with law enforcement agencies in Arizona.

Residents also said the explosions took place at the home of Joshua and Tiffany Cluff. Joshua is a former nursing officer at the hospital and Tiffany a former nurse at the same facility. The Cluffs have three daughters.

Glen Wadsworth was next door, about 30 feet away, mowing his father’s lawn when the blast occurred. He and another neighbor, Wendall Cowart, quickly reacted. One worked to start putting out flames, while the other covered the remains of the deceased person. Wadsworth said he is more shocked today after seeing all the damage and pieces of shrapnel spread in every direction.

(Audio) Glen Wadsworth recounts his experience when the explosions occurred.

Lee called the event devastating, saying something like this would be expected in the middle east, not in the quiet farming community. Local, state and federal officials spent Thursday investigating the scene and collecting debris scattered over about a 1-mile radius. Lee said he doesn’t believe there are any other bombs, and residents should feel safe.

Lee asked anyone that comes across debris to not touch it but contact the sheriff’s department immediately at (775) 962-8080.

Close to 30 people were evacuated from their homes for much of Thursday. Clint Jenson, who lives a few hundred feet away from the explosions, went to his home Thursday morning and was sent away by a deputy. However, while there he noticed debris scattered in his yard and one piece that stuck in the side of his house.

The sheriff said the bombs were definitely not amateur, though no information was provided on what type of devices were used. He confirmed one fatality and one non-life threatening injury from the explosions on 5th Street in Panaca around 8 p.m.

Panaca resident Richard Katschke, who lives about 300 feet away from the blast said he and his wife were preparing for bed, when they were startled by the first explosion.

“In Panaca, we’re used to sonic booms, dynamite on the 24th,” Katschke said. “This was magnitudes greater than that. It just shook our home and left us very shaken.”

He said a second blast occurred shortly after. Residents reported the blasts shook homes for blocks. Several stated that a car bomb was set off in front of a home, plus a bomb in the back yard and that the bomber was killed in or near the car as it exploded. The blast completely destroyed the vehicle and badly damaged the front of the house. “It’s just pushed in, and there’s a hole on one side,” Katschke said. “It’s just structurally beyond repair. It’s not a rubble heap, but it won’t be long before it is.”

Surrounding homes were also damaged. “The house across the street had the windows blown out,” Katschke said, adding that an older home south of the explosion is “basically not liveable.” Fragments of metal and other debris were scattered around the explosion site and even lodged into the sides of homes. One resident said a piece of automobile had fallen through their roof and landed in their living room.

“There’s shrapnel all around town,” Katschke said.

The state dispatched the Nevada Department of Public Safety, the Division of Emergency Management, the State Fire Marshall, Nevada Highway Patrol, Nevada Division of Investigations and two Public Information Officers to assist on the scene. The Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are assisting local law enforcement as well.

Sandoval said he was briefed on the event late Wednesday night. State officials were dispatched to the site to monitor the situation, he said in a statement.

“Details from the incident last night in Panaca are still emerging but I am fully committed to helping assist the victims, residents, and Lincoln County community as they respond to this shocking event,” Sandoval said. “I will be in contact with Lincoln County officials this morning and will offer any and all additional state resources available should the local law enforcement and first responder community require them.”

Rose Lanigan, a freelance writer for The Record, was at a friend’s home about a block away when they were startled by what sounded like a bomb. Upon viewing the scene, Lanigan said she saw a vehicle and telephone pole in flames and a home heavily damaged.

Firefighters and law enforcement quickly arrived on the scene.

“It’s one of those things you don’t expect,” Katschke said. “But, you know, it’s somebody who we knew, who used to live here.”

He added, “This will pull people together. People will rally and come to the side of the Cluff family and do all that they can.”