Owners of exploded Regina Beach home will rebuild

Mark and Kathy Oldershaw, whose lakeside home was destroyed in an explosion linked to a natural gas leak Wednesday, say they will rebuild.

Their Regina Beach home, near Last Mountain Lake, was blown to bits in the blast. Several other properties were severely damaged.

"It was a family cottage," Mark Oldershaw told CBC News. "We enjoyed having the family out for family dinners, that sort of thing. Now it'll be a little different. It'll be a barbecue in the backyard. I guess it's a barbecue right now." 

The explosion happened around 2:30 p.m. CST.

"We could have been there last night," Oldershaw noted Wednesday. "We were thinking of coming out."

He said his family was in their Regina home when they learned about the explosion. They confirmed it was their property and then drove out to the small town, which is about 50 kilometres northwest of Regina.

Oldershaw and his two sons bought the cottage in 2006 and had finished renovations to the 100-year-old building in 2013.

"It was a place to go [to] enjoy your retirement, go fishing," he said.

Kathy Oldershaw noted the fishing boat was lost in the blast.

"What's next? Rebuild it," Mark Oldershaw said. "What else can you do?"

Kathy Oldershaw said the reality of what happened was still sinking in.