The Ksycki Fire

James and Pat Ksycki had created an ideal life.  By 1971, they had three children and James had a good job as a plumber with Tobin Brothers in Peoria.  They had a spilt-level home on Inglewood Drive in a rural area of Washington.  Pat was active in many community activities, particularly those with the St. Patrick's Church.  The three children were Katherine Ann (age 7 in 1971 and a student at St. Pat's), Deborah Sue (age 5 and in Kindergarten at Central Grade School), and Lawrence James (age 3).

Sunday, March 7, 1971.

James was awakened at 6:30 a.m. for reasons he did not know and looked at his clock.  He fell back asleep and in moments a loud explosion sent objects around the room flying.  The couple attempted to get to their children, whose bedrooms were above the garage in their split-level home, but were unable to do so after several different attempts due to the flames and heat caused by the explosion.  Within minutes the house was fully engulfed in flames, and all three children subsequently passed away in the fire.

After meticulous investigation the cause was determined to stem from a leak in a pressurized gas tank that James used for his plumbing that was in the garage in the family's station wagon, directly below the children's bedrooms.  The gas in the cylinder was very explosive, potentially ignited by the lightest spark, and any fire from the gas could not be extinguished but simply needed to burn out.  Ksycki had lodged the tank between a tire and a tool box in the car to keep it from moving.

As a result of the explosion the station wagon's doors were blown off and the top layer of concrete from the garage floor was disintegrated due to the extreme heat.

Katherine, Deborah, and Lawrence are buried in Hillcrest Memory Gardens.