Man charged with criminal negligence, arson in Orleans explosion

A 35-year-old Ottawa man is facing a dozen charges in relation to an explosion in Orléans that injured 12 people last month.

A 35-year-old Ottawa man is facing a dozen charges in relation to an explosion in Orléans that injured 12 people last month.

Kody Troy Crosby has been charged with four counts each of criminal neglience causing bodily harm and arson causing bodily harm, Ottawa police said Thursday.

Crosby is also charged with arson with disregard for human life and arson causing property damage. He is also charged with two counts of breaking and entering.

The explosion on Feb. 13 destroyed four homes that were under construction and damaged many more in a wide radius. Two people were rescued from the rubble with serious injuries and several others were hospitalized, including children.

Residents of nearly 30 households were displaced for several days. Eighteen families were allowed back in their homes and found damage both inside and outside their houses. Ten other families remained displaced as of last week.

Crosby was due to appear in court Thursday morning, police said.

In 2019, a man with Crosby's name and age was charged after Ottawa construction sites across the city were broken into over a two-and-a-half-month period.