Timeline: Explosion in downtown Wheatley, Ont.
A timeline of events leading up to an explosion that levelled a building in downtown Wheatley, Ont.
June 3 – State of emergency declared after hazmat situation in downtown Wheatley
June 4 – Ontario’s hazmat team called to state of emergency in Wheatley
June 10 – Wheatley remains under a state of emergency
June 17 – Wheatley enters second week under state of emergency
June 18 – Wheatley prepares to re-open following state of emergency
June 28 – State of Emergency lifted in Wheatley
July 19 – Downtown Wheatley evacuated again after hazardous gas detected
July 20 – Second State of Emergency declared in Wheatley
July 22 – Evacuated Wheatley residents and business owners expected to return to properties today
Aug. 4 – Province launches investigation into Wheatley gas detection
Aug. 26 - Widespread damage after Wheatley, Ont. explosion
Aug. 27 – Community reacts to Wheatley, Ont. explosion
Aug. 27 – Chatham-Kent fire chief confirms another explosion could happen in Wheatley, Ont.
Aug. 27 – Chatham-Kent officials call for action plan from province following explosion
Aug. 28 – Search for Wheatley gas leak continues
Aug. 30 – Help available for Wheatley residents affected by explosion
Aug. 31 – 'Significant movement' made in preparing to find source of Wheatley explosion
Sept. 1 – Wheatley residents create ‘Wheatley Strong’ t-shirts to aid in fundraising efforts
Sept. 1 – No guarantee and no timeline; Wheatley officials update gas explosion investigation and evacuation
Sept. 3 – Windsor law firm planning to file class action suit for those affected by Wheatley explosion
Sept. 4 - Evacuated Wheatley residents won’t be back in homes next week
Sept. 7 - Officials seek cause of Wheatley explosion as debris clean up continues
Sept. 10 - Wheatley fish fry aims to raise funds for evicted residents
Sept. 12 - 'It's what we do': Wheatley residents come out in droves to support explosion rebuild
Sept. 13 - Municipality asks Wheatley residents to 'not spread gossip on social media'
Sept. 14 - Leamington residents living near Wheatley explosion site encouraged to prepare emergency kits
Sept. 15 - 'This is a cautionary tale': Two GTA MPP’s demand action for Wheatley residents
Sept. 20 - Municipality reaches deal with province to move Wheatley explosion investigation forward
Sept. 21 - Premier Doug Ford visits Wheatley explosion area
Sept. 22 - Safety sake cited for Ford’s low-key explosion site visit
Sept. 25 - Province providing up to $2M for Wheatley following devastating explosion
Oct. 1 - Wheatley residents might be evacuated for months after explosion
Oct. 8 - Monitoring equipment detects gas at scene of previous Wheatley explosion
Nov. 1 - Chatham-Kent accepting applications for Wheatley business recovery program following explosion
Nov. 23 - Another gas release detected in evacuation zone of Wheatley explosion
