The man who killed himself with explosives on Friday, May 18, following an hours-long standoff with police was not the former boyfriend of the woman living in the home.
According to the woman’s current boyfriend, Dave Madore, the 48-year-old electrician from Surrey who strapped himself with explosives and entered the home at 1486 Cannel Dr. used to work with Madore’s girlfriend and never had a relationship.
Madore spoke of the incident and the man’s background in a phone interview with CFJC.
KTW contacted the woman who was held hostage. She told KTW she was not ready to comment on the ordeal and wished to remain anonymous for now.
Following the explosion and subsequent fire that destroyed the Dufferin home, investigators were careful as they sifted through the carnage as conditions were unsafe for investigators.
On Saturday afternoon (May 19), the remains of the man were found amid the rubble.
“We did complete our recovery, in better shape than we feared, and we will now be finalizing confirmation of ID,” coroner Barb McLintock said.
Authorities have not yet released the name of the deceased suspect.
The incident began at about 5:20 p.m. on Thursday, May 18, when the man — armed with a shotgun and carrying a box of explosives — entered the Cannel Drive home.
Madore told CFJC there were eight people at home at the time — Madore and his girlfriend, her four children and two of his kids.
According to Mounties, the man fired a shot into the ceiling of the home and ordered everyone out except the woman.
He held her hostage for more than six hours, releasing her unharmed at midnight after a lengthy phone conversation with an RCMP negotiator — a negotiator Madore credited with saving his girlfriend’s life with his timely and talented tactics on the phone.
At 12:09 a.m., a series of explosions could be heard from the area of the home, followed by an audible groaning sound.
Learned said those explosions occurred at the same time the RCMP negotiator “abruptly” lost contact with the gunman.
Flames could then be seen inside the home, beginning on the main floor but quickly spreading to the rest of the house.
A short time later, another explosion rocked the neighbourhood.
The fire was under control by 1 a.m., but the home was destroyed.
Learned praised Kamloops Fire Rescue crews, who were forced to hold off battling the blaze for 30 minutes because of the potential of further explosions.
“The house was lost and that’s unfortunate,” Learned said.
“But, houses can be replaced and lives can’t be.”
Homes within a 200-metre radius — approximately 20 in all — were evacuated. Residents were offered temporary shelter at Interior Savings Centre.
The man said he had wired explosives to the gas tank of his vehicle and, at one point, told officers he would walk out of the home with the hostage handcuffed to him and a bomb switch in his hand. He said the bomb would detonate if police shot him.
He did not leave the home.
Learned said officers confirmed there was a bomb in the vehicle the gunman drove to the home.
There was some concern the fire would spread to neighbouring homes or nearby hillsides, but crews had it under control shortly after 1 a.m.
Neighbour Paul Zaetsoff, who lives a block away from the house, said he couldn’t believe what he was seeing in the usually quiet Dufferin neighbourhood.
“It is really bizarre,” he said.
“It’s very sad to see this so close to home. This is actually unbelievable that it’s happening here.”