BOZEMAN – Cleanup of debris left by a deadly March 5 explosion in downtown Bozeman is set to begin as early as next week.
The four owners of the destroyed structures have contracted with an excavation company to clean up the site. Greg Poncelet, of Montana Ready Mix, declined to say how much his company would charge, but said “it’s a lot less than the number the city had been throwing around.”
City officials had put up $400,000 in loans to help with the cleanup.
Poncelet said the plan is to remove debris little-by-little and in sections to allow business owners an opportunity to salvage some of their belongings, if any remain.
Work can begin as soon as the structural integrity of the buildings on the east side of the site is secured. Bracing on the west side is already complete.
Poncelet said he expects to begin excavating in the next week or two and anticipates completing the job within a month.
The explosion, which was traced to a leak in a NorthWestern Energy natural-gas line, killed 36-year-old Tara Reistad Bowman.