At least two women were injured after three buildings collapsed in an explosion and a fire in Philadelphia at dawn on Sunday morning, according to the city’s fire department.
The Philadelphia Fire Department said he responded to the scene in 1900 West Bristol Street around 4:50 am after an explosion report. It was discovered that three attached houses had “exploited in themselves”, which resulted in a fire, said Daniel McCarty, interim executive chief of the Fire Department.
“Preliminary reports where there were trapped people,” said McCarty. “We were able to locate two residents and transport them to the hospitals in the area, both older women, one being critical, a stable.”
There have been “secondary collapses” near the house that is believed to be the source of the “primary explosion,” said McCarty, adding that at least five houses of rows have now been affected. The area is an active fire scene.
The cause of the explosion is not known at this time. Firefighters are on stage and a collapse area has been established in case additional collapses occur, said McCarty. Ten people were evacuated from the area.
A crew of the Fire Department is also looking through the rubble and debris to find additional people who could have been in the houses, he said.
McCarty described the scene as “chaotic” and said the approach is to ensure that additional houses are not affected by the incident.
“The most important thing is the stability of the surrounding houses, making sure that this danger is not extended,” McCarty said. “Our men and women from the fire department will pass with their special operations company to ensure that no one is not counted in this block. Therefore, this will be an extensive operation throughout the day for the Philadelphia Fire Department.”
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