Man Facing Charges After Possible Drug Lab Explosion At Grass Valley Apartment Injures Him, 2 Children

GRASS VALLEY (CBS13) — Two children and an adult were injured in an explosion at a Grass Valley apartment complex Monday night.

Police say the explosion happened in an apartment unit in the 300 block of Sutton Way, east of Highway 49. It's being investigated as a honey oil lab explosion.

"The butane honey oil labs are extremely dangerous, they're extremely volatile and unpredictable. And it can take a very small ignition source to ignite a very small amount of butane. And in a structure like this, it could have leveled the structure depending on the amount of butane that was in the building," Grass Valley Police Sergeant Dale Norvell said.

The adult and one of the children were taken to a hospital in Sacramento, police said; the other child was treated then released at the scene.

On Tuesday, the adult was identified as 31-year-old Kyle Patche.

Some residents in the Nevada Woods apartment complex were evacuated as officials investigate the scene. Police said the damage was severe enough for building inspectors to "red tag" the structure.

The child taken to the hospital has since been treated for burns and released, police said.

Patche is still being treated, but police say he's facing numerous charges when he's released - illegal manufacturing of a controlled substance, felony child endangerment, causing a fire that causes injury, and causing a fire of an inhabited structure.

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