The four-bedroom house in Sussex Corner, N.B., was reduced to rubble by Friday's explosion.

RCMP in New Brunswick say they recovered a stick of dynamite and detonating wires on the property of a home that was razed by an explosion Friday.

Sgt. Bruce Reid said the items were discovered Friday, metres from where the two-storey house once stood in Sussex Corner.

Sussex fire Chief Bill Wanamaker said his crews were putting out the fire Friday evening when they noticed a stick of dynamite and detonation wires. So they pulled back, fearing for their safety.

"We just unhooked all of our equipment and took our fire trucks and our manpower and left the area," he said Sunday.

"A few members on the fire department know he was a blaster — that's what he done for a living," Wanamaker said of the man who firefighters knew lived in the house.

"And I guess his truck was sitting in the dooryard with his name and the blasting company name right on the side of it. And it was just a safety factor for our guys not knowing if there were any explosives in the area just to pull back until we were sure."

The remains of James Harvey Goddard, 53, were found Saturday at the back of the home.

Goddard's 51-year-old wife was in the front of the house when the explosion occurred and suffered minor injuries.

Police have not yet determined what caused the explosion, but Reid said the victim worked with explosives on construction sites.

He said it is not known whether the dynamite and wires found were from Goddard's workplace.

Reid said explosives should be kept locked on a secure site.

With files from CBC News