Friends, neighbors remember victims of Crescent Township house explosion

Even at age 89, David L. Mitchell Jr. kept active in local matters, serving on Crescent’s planning commission.

A longtime civic leader and political mentor, Mitchell, along with his wife, Helen, were fixtures in the tiny township along the Ohio River.

They once ran a plastics manufacturing company together, oversaw Crescent’s former historical society and would open their log cabin ranch home each year to family and friends for an annual pie baking extravaganza before Thanksgiving.

“I loved Dave Mitchell,” said John Riley, who served with him on the Moon Municipal Authority where Mitchell was the Crescent representative. “For me, Dave Mitchell was a father figure. Dave Mitchell exemplified the person I strive to be.”

Neighbors on the couple’s cul-de-sac on Riverview Road and friends throughout the area remained in shock Wednesday at the sudden deaths of the Mitchells, who were killed Tuesday when their home exploded just before 9 a.m.

The blast remains under investigation.

Family members of the Mitchells did not respond to inquiries, and as of Wednesday evening no obituary or funeral information could be found online.

But some friends, like Riley, were happy to talk about David and Helen, 87, who lived next door to their daughter in the home they built in 2009.

Riley had met David Mitchell nearly 30 years ago and said the two hit it off instantly. They both participated in union contract negotiations with municipal employees while serving on the Moon Township Municipal Board.

“David always made sure we had a good relationship with the union workforce,” Riley said. “He helped cultivate a strong culture of valuing the workers and customers. He was tremendously supportive and always had a focus on serving the community.”

Riley recalled the time in 2000 when Mitchell led a merger between the Crescent-South Heights Sewage Authority and the Moon Municipal Authority.

“Without his leadership, it would not have happened,” Riley said.

Robert Steffes lived close to the Mitchells for 13 years.

“He was always involved in the civic life of the community; he was one of those guys that kind of held it all together,” Steffes, 71, of Aliquippa said. “Once you knew him, you just couldn’t help but getting involved, too.”

Steffes said the Mitchells once owned and operated Tri-State Plastics, a plastic manufacturing company for space, specialty automotive, mass transit, industrial, utility and military/defense parts.

He recalled one notable feature of the Mitchell property: a private gas well. The house was not connected to Columbia Gas, the utility that serves other homes on the street.

A few times, he remembered hearing the gas well “hissing,” which prompted him to call David Mitchell.

“We used to walk by it every day,” Steffes said. “Every once in awhile, we would pass it, and it would be leaking.”

Lee Gierczynski, a Columbia Gas spokesman, said homeowners with private wells — not the utility — are responsible for handling their own gas supply.

Columbia Gas, which serves some homes on Riverview Road, responded to the scene Tuesday.

Widespread damage

Mary Zawoysky thought her house at 1413 Riverview Road was the one blowing up when she heard the explosion on Tuesday morning. She’s the closest neighbor down the hill from where the Mitchells’ house stood.

“It was an incredible boom,” said Zawoysky, 64.

Zawoysky said she went outside and called 911.

“I couldn’t see the house,” she said. “There was a large flame and smoke — things flying in the air.”

Debris littered the surrounding area, trees and other people’s yards. A large piece of wood flew down and broke Zawoysky’s lamppost. It had nails sticking out of it.

Her garage door blew out, trapping her car inside.

Zawoysky, a longtime Riverview Road resident, said she thought the Mitchells had lived in the neighborhood for about 50 years.

“We’re very tight,” she said. “It’s just a really nice community of neighbors.”

Gary McCutcheon lives down the street. He was brushing his teeth when he heard the explosion.

“We looked out the window — saw flames shooting up in the air,” said McCutcheon, 69.

He said he heard a second blast that was smaller than the first.

William Miller, 60, and his son Joe, 36, own Joe’s Painting & Power Washing in Bobtown, Greene County.

They were in the neighborhood Wednesday morning repairing broken windows on a house about 300 yards from the site of the explosion.

“(We’re) not used to this kind of stuff,” Joe said of the explosion.

“It’s shocking what happened,” William said. “I’m still trying to wrap my head around it.”