“(Rottier) can say whatever he wants, but whether it (fits) the facts of the case, I don’t know,” Pulvermacher said, noting the official investigation into a cause is ongoing by his department and the state Fire Marshal’s office.

Pulvermacher said he couldn’t say when the investigation will be finished. “As soon as I have something that is releasable, it will be released to the public,” he said.

So far, investigators have ruled out drugs, a gas line rupture outside the house and anything done by people working in the vicinity at the time, Pulvermacher said.

On Tuesday, several insurance companies were granted access to the explosion scene and the entire debris field, Pulvermacher said. His own investigators were following up on other leads and making contact with homeowners.

Grittner’s mother, Neldine Nichols, told the State Journal she had not heard Rottier’s theory of the explosion either. She said she was more focused on her son’s recovery, which she described as progressing “remarkably,” given that Grittner, 57, easily could have died in the explosion.