LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Homeowners in east Louisville are picking up the pieces, after blasting at the new Veterans Administration hospital left craters in houses on Tuesday.
During blasting at the site off Brownsboro Road, fragments of sediment and rock landed on the Watterson Expressway and onto nearby homes and property, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Construction was stopped for Tuesday night, but crews were back at work on Wednesday morning. Blasting has been halted for now, but some neighbors are questioning their safety.
Blasting at the VA Hospital site in east Louisville sent a rock through the roof of Anna Maria Moreno's home. The rock left a hole in the ceiling and her glass-top stove in ruins. (WDRB Image) Oct. 5, 2022
"It was pretty scary. Thank God, we were not home," said Anna Maria Moreno, who said a stone flew through her roof.
"I first thought it was something from my ceiling coming down," Moreno said, but what she found was a massive rock that came through the ceiling, landed in the kitchen and damaged her glass-top stove.
"When I looked through the hole, I saw the light actually from the outside, so I was like something came in," she said.
The VA hospital site and the blasting is five minutes from Moreno's home, and she said, "We’ve have been having that vibration every single day."
The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers said blasting on the site is suspended indefinitely, but the cause of the incident still remains under investigation.
"It was over in our southwest corner, when the blast took off there was flying rock that we do know landed on Interstate 264, and we also know that it landed in areas of the neighborhood -- specifically that southwest corner," said Matthew Lowe, Chief VA Division Army Engineers.
Lowe said they are trying to pinpoint a cause and will be doing independent reviews.
The blasting contractor, HTA Enterprises, also performed similar construction on the Lewis & Clark Bridge in east Louisville in 2015. WDRB reported nearby residents filed complaints then of damage, but those complaints were dismissed.
Residents near the VA hospital development say HTA enterprises surveyed the neighborhood informing them of blasting prior to breaking ground.
"The remaining work is continuing. We are going to continue putting out the concrete basement forms, but all aspects of blasting are suspended indefinitely, so that is not going to happen until we have a chance to look into those investigations, assess what’s going on and determine what is safe," Lowe said.
The Army Corps says there is no timeline of when the investigation will be clear, but construction will resume with safety remaining a large focus.
Anyone who believes damage occurred to their home, property or vehicle is asked to contact USACE Public Affairs at LOUVAMCconstruction@usace.army.mil.
Related stories:
- Blasting suspended at new VA hospital in east Louisville after rocks cause property damage
- Construction begins on Louisville's new VA Medical Center after years of delays
- New images show progress on $840 million VA hospital in east Louisville
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