By Timia Cobb
syracuse.com
LINCOLN, N.Y. 鈥� Susan and Carl Pynn had lived in their Madison County home for over 40 years.
They spent their lives committed to helping others, their family and friends said. Before retiring, Susan worked as an emergency medical technician. Carl was a firefighter for the Lincoln Fire Department for 50 years.
The firefighters and others they called friends and spent years working with on Wednesday had to pull them out from the rubble of their home after a explosion leveled the two-story home.
鈥淚 imagined it must be like what people go through when like a tornado had hit their home, that鈥檚 essentially what it felt like,鈥� said their son, Kyle Pynn , 54, of Kansas City.
Susan, 74, and Carl, 78, were found under the wreckage of the home. Susan was pronounced dead at the scene. Carl was airlifted to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse and was in critical condition Thursday.
The explosion was reported at 6:40 p.m. Wednesday at their home at 4621 Burleson Road in the town of Lincoln . There鈥檚 nothing left but a pile of debris.
Kyle learned about the explosion when a cousin called on Wednesday night.
The cousin usually called him to argue about the Buffalo Bills beating the Kansas City Chiefs , but this time he told him his childhood home had exploded. Kyle later learned his parents had been inside.
Susan and Carl were high school sweethearts, their son said Friday as he drove to see his father in the hospital
鈥淚鈥檓 just trying to get my head wrapped around the pain that my father will have to deal with when he starts to wake up and realize what鈥檚 going on,鈥� he said.
His parents shared a love for community service, which made them quite known in Madison County, he said.
鈥溾�楾hey鈥檙e the nicest people,鈥� You know, that鈥檚 always the comment,鈥� he said.
His father was a past fire investigator for Madison County and worked with the Lincoln Fire Department for years. His mother was an EMT with the Greater Lenox Ambulance Corps.
Even after retirement, Kyle said they both continued to find ways to spend time giving back to their community. His father drove a school bus for Oneida City School District, while his mother was a home health care provider.
Kyle was able to catch an early morning flight Thursday and immediately went to see his father at Upstate. When he was finally able to stop by his parent鈥檚 home, he couldn鈥檛 understand what he was looking at.
鈥淗ow is this even possible,鈥� he said. 鈥淟iterally everything is just blown off in every direction. 鈥淚t鈥檚 honestly, to me, incomprehensible.鈥�
Lincon Fire Chief Dan Lozipone said several members of the department recognized the home as soon as they arrived on Wednesday.
Seeing the couple鈥檚 vehicle in the driveway told them they were home, he said.
鈥淥ur main concern was locating both of them,鈥� he said.
The road to the home was impassible and scattered with rubble, he said. The two-story, four-bedroom home was condensed to a 6-foot pile of wreckage, he said.
鈥淚t was just absolute total destruction,鈥� he said.
The rescuers heard moaning coming from the debris and worked to pull the couple out, he said. It wasn鈥檛 easy to get the couple out because they were trapped in the debris, he said. They had to cut through roof and tunnel through the remains for the home, the chief said.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had meth lab explosions, little explosions here and there,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e seen a lot of things in our careers, and that is the most violent explosion we鈥檝e ever seen.鈥�
A propane leak caused the explosion, Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood. It appeared the couple had no warning before the explosion leveled their home, he said. The leak appeared to be accidental, he said.
Kyle said he moved into the home when he was 12 years old. He said he will remember his mother for being kind and always having a smile. Thinking about his father, he remembers the time they made toy trains together in his workshop inside the home.
鈥淭hey were the loves of each other鈥檚 lives,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e been virtually inseparable for 56 years.鈥�
Staff writer Timia Cobb covers breaking news. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? You can reach her at tcobb@syracuse.com.
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