Authorities confirm at least one fatality in Maryland house explosion
A minimum of one individual was discovered deceased and two others were harmed when a blast Sunday morning flattened a residence and harmed various nearby homes in a suburban Baltimore community, authorities revealed.
The explosion was reported around 6:42 a.m. on Arthur Woods Drive in the Harford County city of Bel Air, roughly 32 miles north of Baltimore, according to officials.
A picture published on X by Harford County Fire and Emergency Medical Services depicted firefighters combating a minor fire and exploring the remnants of the residence, which was reduced to shattered pieces of timber, insulation, and other wreckage.
“I’ve been in this profession for 18 years and this was one of the most massive explosions I’ve witnessed,” Master Deputy State Fire Marshal Oliver Alkire stated during a press briefing on Sunday.
Alkire mentioned that firefighters from the Harford County Fire Department were attending to a report of a gas leak in the vicinity when the explosion transpired.
Jeffrey Sexton, a spokesperson for the Harford County Fire and EMS Association, verified that one individual was discovered deceased in a substantial debris field caused by the explosion. The identity of the deceased individual was not immediately disclosed.
Sexton indicated that search-and-rescue teams are still searching through the rubble as of mid-morning Sunday.
Alkire mentioned that employees from the Baltimore Gas and Electric company had also arrived in the area before the explosion to examine an electrical problem. Alkire mentioned that a BG&E worker was harmed by the blast.
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Inhabitants in the vicinity reported hearing the powerful explosion and sensing their residences tremble, authorities stated.
The reason for the explosion is currently being investigated by the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office, the Harford County Sheriff’s Department, and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
ABC News’ Davone Morales contributed to this report.