COMSTOCK PARK, Mich. (WWMT) — A home exploded within a quiet West Michigan cul-de-sac, early Tuesday, shaking neighbors awake and launching a criminal investigation.
The whole incident was captured on ring security video shared with News Channel 3 from a neighbor.
It shows the dark neighborhood, and then a massive, bright white light across the street, just before 4 a.m.
A neighbor’s Ring surveillance video shows the moment a home on Rollaway Drive NE in Plainfield Township exploded into flames just before 4 a.m. on Tuesday, May 26, 2026. One person is dead and one is in serious condition. Kent County authorities believe it was “intended to be a murder-suicide.” (WWMT)
The Kent County Sheriff’s Office (KSCO) confirms that was the moment a home on Rollaway Drive NE in Plainfield Township burst into flames.
Plainfield Fire Department crews were dispatched to the scene and arrived to find a completely leveled home, engulfed in flames, they said, and then immediately called for backup.
Investigators later uncovered evidence indicating that the incident was a premeditated, murder-suicide attempt, according to Kent County Undersheriff Bryan Muir.
Authorities believe the man who lived at the home intentionally released natural gas into the home, triggering the explosion.
“We have determined at this point this believes to be a domestic related situation at the home. And that the fire was intentionally set, what we believe by the husband at this point, intending to be a murder suicide,” Undersheriff Muir said.
A man was found dead inside the home. The sheriff’s office has not released names, saying the Kent County Medical Examiner must first make a positive identification of the body.
A woman is in serious condition as of Tuesday night, authorities say, after having been pulled from the burning home by neighbors.
Two neighbors, Tim Johnson and an unnamed 17-year-old from next door, rushed to the home and pulled a woman from the flames before first responders arrived.
“I was there right after it exploded. I wasn’t waiting,” Johnson told News Channel 3.
The Kent County Sheriff’s Office said without their intervention, the woman likely would not have survived.
“I heard she’s still alive… let’s hope she pulls through,” said Johnson.
Investigators describe where the case took a dark turn after the discovery of text messages between the man and woman, a husband and wife, revealing the situation as “domestic-related.”
KSCO said those exchanges point clearly toward a husband’s intentions of committing murder-suicide.
The working theory, according to the Plainfield Fire Department, is that natural gas was intentionally leaked into the basement.
The ignition source remains unknown and under investigation.
News Channel 3 asked the sheriff’s office whether they are aware of any prior domestic incidents at the address and a spokesperson said that information will be released as the investigation continues.
Steve Huizinga, who lives a few houses down, said he and his wife heard not one, but two explosions.
“We heard the initial one that woke us up, and then maybe a couple of minutes later, we heard another smaller explosion,” he said.
Huizinga said he had also heard about potential issues happening inside the home, though he was careful to note that is only what he had heard.
“I heard that they were maybe having marriage troubles, and whether that contributed to the explosion, I’m sure that will come out in the investigation,” Huizinga told News Channel 3.
The heroic neighbors who rushed to help the woman are an example, he said, of the community.
“This is a great neighborhood. It’s very quiet. People are good. You know, if you need help, it’ll be here,” said Huizinga.
The case is a joint investigation among Plainfield Fire Department, the Kent County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Michigan State Police.
The fire chief noted an explosion of this magnitude is unlike anything he has seen in his career.
Officials emphasized during a Tuesday evening news conference that there is no threat to the surrounding area.
“To the family affected by this… our deepest sorrows for having to deal with a situation so tragic,” Undersheriff Muir said during the news conference. “I’m sure nobody wants situations like this broadcast to all their family and friends and local media stations…But we really wanted the community to know that this is an isolated incident.”
Several nearby homes have windows boarded up from the force of the explosion.
News Channel 3 will share updates as the investigation develops and information is released.
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