By Ed Nadolski
Editor in Chief
Evidence suggests a man who had recently been kicked out of the home he had been living in with his girlfriend and her son caused the May 14 fire and explosion on Ketterhagen Road in the Town of Burlington and is responsible for killing all three, according to Racine County Sheriff Christopher Schmaling.
While the actual events leading up to the fire and explosion that leveled the home at 29235 Ketterhagen Road may never be known, investigators came to that conclusion “based on the totality of information obtained throughout the investigation,” a news release on the findings states.
“…The evidence suggests that Craig Lambert is responsible for the death of Nicholas Chaulkin, Kimberly Howe, and the subsequent fire and explosion,” investigators concluded.
According to investigators, Lambert, 41 – who had been living with Howe and her son, Chaulkin, at the home for several years – had been kicked out by Howe. Howe, 43, and Chaulkin, 17, had stayed at a hotel the night before the explosion “to get away from Lambert,” the release states.
Howe and her son were reportedly on the way to the home in the minutes leading up to the explosion. The release states Howe made a phone call to an acquaintance at 2:31 p.m. to say “she was en route to ensure Craig Lambert was packing his belongings and leaving the residence.”
The first report of a fire at the home came in 45 minutes later at 3:16 p.m.
Two of the bodies – later identified through dental and DNA records as Lambert and Chaulkin – were discovered in the charred rubble a day after the explosion.
The release states Chaulkin had suffered a gunshot wound to the back of the head and was dead prior to the fire because there was no evidence of smoke in his lungs.
“…Autopsy results did reveal the presence of smoke in Craig Lambert’s lungs, which is consistent with him being alive after the fire began,” the release states.
After a week of searching by investigators, other human remains collected from the site were later identified as Howe. “The injuries sustained by Lambert and Howe in the fire were so severe that the Medical Examiners Office was unable to determine the exact manner of death,” the release states.
While the exact cause of the fire could not be determined due to the level of destruction, the release states “…evidence at the scene indicated the intentional removal of an LP gas line in the basement allowing the home to fill will gas and explode upon introduction to an ignition source.”
A full story with additional details of the investigation and conclusion will appear in this week’s editions of the Burlington Standard Press, Waterford Post and Westine Report.
A copy of the Sheriff’s Department news release is available by clicking here.
A vigil is planned for Thursday at Echo Park in Burlington at 5:30 p.m. by the Women’s Resource Center of Racine. There will special activities planned for Chaulkin. For more information, call the Healing House at (262) 878-1238 or the 24-hour advocate line at (262) 633-3233.
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