Trial begins for propane technician charged in fatal Virginia home explosion

LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. - A trial is now underway for Roger Bentley, the propane technician charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection to a 2024 house explosion that killed a Loudoun County volunteer firefighter and injured 13 others.

Bentley was the technician who responded to a home on Silver Ridge Drive just hours before the explosion. The explosion occurred while firefighters were on scene investigating a reported gas smell, killing firefighter Trevor Brown and leveling the two-story home.

The homeowner testified that she called the propane company after noticing a strong smell shortly after the tank was refilled. Bentley arrived that afternoon but reportedly told her multiple times that the situation was not an emergency. Instead, he said the propane would dissipate and that a team would come in the following days to remove the tank.

The homeowner also told jurors that Bentley never entered the home during his visit, despite the odor.

The homeowner testified she followed the propane company’s lead, assuming they had the necessary documentation and history on the tank.

The explosion occurred just hours later, killing Brown as he responded to the scene. Thirteen others—mostly firefighters—were injured in the blast, which leveled the two-story home on Silver Ridge Drive.

Defense attorneys argued that the propane tank had a documented history of issues and suggested that those problems may not have been fully documented and communicated to technicians.

The defense is arguing that this was a tragic accident, not a criminal act — and not Bentley’s fault.

The trial is expected to last three weeks.