Firefighters at the scene of a house explosion in Jefferson County said they are treating it as a crime scene.

Friday, a state fire marshal official and the Jefferson County Sherriff's Department were at the site of the home, which was reduced to rubble after it exploded Thursday night.

The homeowner, Eric Walter, suffered burns on 70 percent of his body and remains in West Penn Hospital. His girlfriend and children escaped without injury.

Officials said Walter's son smelled propane in the home just before 11 p.m. Thursday. Walter instructed his girlfriend to take a cell phone and the children and leave the house. Soon after, the home burst into flames.

This is the fifth time a home Walter lived in either exploded or caught fire.

The state fire marshal's office said Walters' home on North 3rd Street in Toronto caught fire in 1996. That blaze was ruled arson.

After Walter moved to county Road 56, his home there caught fire in 2001. Two years later, in 2003, the home exploded. The cause is still undetermined.

Walter rebuilt his home in the same area, then it again caught fire in 2006. That blaze was also ruled arson, but no one has ever been arrested.

Jane Fiala, a neighbor, said, "It just blows my mind, you know, to think that this could happen to the same person this many times."

As crews sifted through debris strewn across the property where the home once stood, they said they are trying to preserve what little is left of the home to keep it as evidence for the ongoing investigation.

Stay with NEWS9 and WTOV9.com for continuing coverage.