House explodes due to possible gas leak in Easton, Mass.

[Ian David]

GLIDE Number: EX-20070910-13332-USA
Date / time: 10/09/2007 19:17:02
Event: Explosion
Area: North-America
Country: USA
State/County: State of Massachusetts
City: Easton
Number of Deads: None or unknow
Number of Injured: 6 persons
Damage level: Minor

Description:

An explosion shattered an Easton home today blowing out the walls and windows and collapsing the roof to the ground. "I thought it was a bomb," said neighbor Rick Russell, 39. He said the blast knocked his TV off it stand and a second explosion almost knocked him to the ground as he ran to help. Officials at the scene say students from nearby Stonehill College lived in the house.


The blast occurred at about 11 a.m. at a home on Seaver Street. Six people were sent to hospitals, although it’s not immediately clear how badly they were injured. The dispatcher says no one was killed.

The cause of the explosion is under investigation, but the fire may have been triggered by a gas leak, according to officials at the scene. It is not clear if students and workers from a gas company were both injured in the explosion and fire. The building was still smoking heavily hours after the massive explosion.

The blast leveled a two-story home and the impact was felt all over the Easton neighborhood. Reports at the scene tell of victims being pulled from the rubble. Russell said immediately after the explosion he saw two people running into the street and a police officer from a nearby detail rushing over to help out.

More:
http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/woalert_read.php?lang=eng&cid=13332