Crime & Safety

Explosion, Fire Destroy Lakeshore Home

Nobody home or hurt, though family dogs were inside.

A fire and explosion consumed a Lake Minnetonka home Friday afternoon and, with it, two dogs belonging to the homeowners. Nobody was home at the time and nobody was hurt.

Prateek and Sigrid Sahgal own the home, which they purchased in the fall of 2007 for $1.75 million.

The property at 3944 Enchanted Dr. in Shorewood caught fire just after 2 p.m. Fire and emergency crews raced to the scene from more than a dozen neighboring cities, including units from Wayzata, Excelsior, Long Lake and Minnetrista.

Find out what's happening in Lake Minnetonkawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Initial reports indicated three people were inside the home, said Mound Fire Chief Greg Pederson, but firefighters confirmed otherwise shortly after arriving. One or possibly two cars parked inside the home's garage exploded as a result of intense heat, Pederson said.

"On arrival, part of the house was gone and about 50 percent of the home was fully engulfed," Pederson said.

Find out what's happening in Lake Minnetonkawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Water units fought the fire from Phelps Bay while tanker trucks hauled water to the site from sources a mile or more away from the home.

"There is no city water here, so we have to bring water in," Pederson said.

Neighbors reported a fast-moving fire that spread throughout the home within minutes.

"The fire looked like it started from the gas grill area and it just went up the front of the house," said Bruce Johnson, a neighbor. "It got to the garage and then one of the cars exploded."

Wendy Morical, another neighbor, said she had spoken with the family several times and that they were shocked and distraught to learn their home was a total loss.

"I told them it's pretty much engulfed in flames and that there really isn't gonna be much left of it," Morical said of her conversation with the family. "It's going to be a tragedy for them to try to have to try to get through this whole thing."


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.

More from Lake Minnetonka