Man unharmed after using blow torch to thaw gas line INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A blow torch being used late Wednesday afternoon to thaw natural gas lines ignited a south side house fire, Indianapolis Fire Department said. No one was hurt, but three adults and a dog were displaced from the home in the Valley Ridge Farms subdivision located southwest of the intersection of Bluff Road and West Stop 11 Road. Firefighters just before 5:40 p.m. Wednesday went to the 8300 block of Hill Gail Drive after the homeowner discovered flames in a bedroom closet while his brother was in the crawl space with the blow torch. The homeowner, uncertain if his brother in the had escaped, called 911. Investigators think sparks from the blow torch ignited the fire when they traveled through an open chase, which is an unsealed, hollow, vertical shaft or channel running through a house. Crews arrived to find heavy smoke and began fighting the fire while also searching for the man in the crawl space, who was unaware of the danger. The man initially refused to evacuate, saying he was experienced in plumbing work and continued to work on the gas lines. The firefighters eventually extracted him. The fire, which caused significant damage, was brought under control within 25 minutes, the fire department said in social media posts. Decatur Civil Township Fire Department and the Metropolitan Emergency Services Agency assisted Indianapolis firefighters. ...read more read less