An apparent explosion Saturday just north of downtown injured a man and turned a house into a smoking, charred pile of rubble.
The blast destroyed the house at the corner of Bayer and Sallie avenues, shredded the side of the home next door and sent debris flying across the street. Fire crews are still at the scene.
The injured man, an IPFW student, was staying at the home temporarily and planned to leave in August to complete his senior year at IU Bloomington.
Another man and a woman, a retired firefighter who lives nearby, worked with Baugher to find the source of the voice. Eventually, they saw movement through the smoke.
A soot-covered young man was on his feet in a part of the house that had not completely collapsed. On his own, he managed to maneuver his way out of the wreckage.
Baugher, 36, and the other two good Samaritans helped him over a fence to safety before flames got a hold of the house.
FOX6 News is told one firefighter is in serious condition, one in fair condition and one in good condition. Two were treated and released.
The civilian is reportedly in critical condition.
“I was at the hospital. All those people, I am their boss and they work for me and it is hard to take,” Milwaukee Fire Department Battalion Chief Michael Romas said at the scene Sunday night.
A close call yesterday in West Haverstraw, New York. Firefighters were investigating the rupture of a high pressure gas line by a Verizon crew when there was an explosion that leveled a townhouse and injured two firefighters and two utility workers. The urgent message about the explosion comes from command at 4:49 on the audio above.
The injured firefighters are Gerry Knapp and Ken Patterson of West Haverstraw Volunteer Hose Company #2. As you will read below, Firefighter Patterson also had a close call a year ago.
Two firefighters were near the townhouse on Zarriello Lane investigating reports of a gas leak when the blast occurred shortly after 12:30 p.m..
“They knocked on the door at 52 Zarriello right before the explosion,” said Orange and Rockland Utilities spokesman Michael Donovan. “No one answered so we assume no one was home.”
The firefighters were brought to Westchester Medical Center as other first responders battled to get the blaze under control and to contain further explosions. Nearby homes were evacuated after the blast, which leveled the townhouse.
Knapp, who lives near the development and is West Haverstraw’s emergency coordinator, suffered first and second degree burns to his face, West Haverstraw Mayor John Ramundo said. Patterson, who works for the village Department of Public Works, suffered severe burns to a leg.
Patterson, one of the injured firefighters, was nearly killed while fighting a blaze almost a year to the day.
On Jan. 14, 2011, he was inside a home on Westside Avenue that had been illegally converted and became disoriented while searching for potential victims.
He ran out of air inside the burning building and issued a mayday call.
Another firefighter, Andrew Kolesar, found Patterson in the building and rescued him.
The gas leak and explosion happened yesterday afternoon on Avenue B. Besides destroying the single family home where the leak occurred fire had already extended to the Side D exposure and threatening the B exposure when firefighters arrived. In the audio below you will hear that the original call was dispatched as a natural gas leak. The initial report of the explosion came when the first unit arrived on the scene and reported fire and asked for a second-alarm.
A quiet Schenectady neighborhood was instantly blown into horror late Wednesday afternoon. A powerful natural gas explosion leveled one house and severely damaged two others on Avenue B on the city's north side.
As horrifying as it was, residents who experienced it say it was a miracle that no one got hurt.
A contractor, working on the duplex where he lived, had pierced a natural gas line while trying to ground an electrical wire.
Minutes later, there would be a massive explosion and fire that would level the home and damage two others along this dead-end street on the city's North Side.
Schenectady Fire Chief Michael Della Rocco said, “By the time our crews arrived, the gas had ignited and subsequently exploded.”
“Our investigation has already begun. We’re working with the Department of General Services, also with the police department and our own investigative crews to find out what happened,” said Chief Della Rocco. “The results are typical of a gas explosion. The front, rear and both sides of the building being blown outward, and the debris field associated with that.”
Looking at this, I’m not sure how they did it, but neighbors say they rescued an elderly woman from this burning pile of rubble that used to be her home. The explosion occurred last night on in Cinnaminson, New Jersey. According to neighbors the woman was badly burned, but conscious.
This was the home that was destroyed last night. Click the image for Bing's Bird's Eye View.
“They were watching the Flyers game, everything came off the shelf in the house, it blew out a couple windows across the street, it was bad,” neighbor Jackie Larmanis said.
The surrounding homes suffered significant damage and authorities say those residents may be displaced for some time.
Public Service Electric and Gas is investigating the cause of the explosion. They are looking into whether it was a gas explosion.
Action News viewers called into the newsroom shortly after the explosion saying they felt the effects from as far away as Northeast Philadelphia and Columbus, New Jersey.
An elderly woman and here dog were at home when the blast happened and were rescued thanks to the quick thinking of neighbors including Ron Ruppert.
“I went and looked and I saw the older ladies house on fire,” Ruppert said.
“I knew she was in there,” Ruppert said. “We tried to get through the front but there was too much fire so me and another guy… we ran to the back of the house and she was standing towards the back of the house with the dog.”
A violent house explosion rocked a Chantilly neighborhood Sunday night, leaving one family without their home this holiday season.
Officials tell 9 NEWS NOW Fairfax County Fire and Rescue were called to home home on Lees Corner at Pennsboro Court shortly before 9:00 p.m. for a report of a gas leak. While fire crews were on their way to the call, the house suddenly exploded. When firefighters pulled up to the scene, they found the home on fire.
Officials say two adults and two children live at the residence. Luckily, no one was home at the time of the incident and no one was injured.
All that’s left of the structure is a burned-out shell. Deputy Chief Chuck Ryan with Fairfax County Fire and Rescue, says it took hours to put out the flames, but there is no threat to anyone in the neighborhood.
Houses on either side of the explosion were also damaged.
Police at the scene say there is still a gas leak in the area, however no one has been evacuated from their homes. According to Ryan, gas lines run under the street and into the structures in the neighborhood. Ryan says the explosion may have ruptured the gas line under the street level and that’s what could be causing gas to continue to flow freely.
Crews from Washington Gas Company are on the scene. Officials say surrounding homes do have gas service at this time.
Do you know the way to San Jose (because that’s where the fire is)?: A very busy holiday weekend for San Jose, California firefighters. Above is video from a six-alarm fire yesterday that destroyed a 28,000 square foot elementary school building. The loss is estimated at $8 million. The fire is considered suspicious. Read more here. At the bottom of the page is a fire-alarm warehouse fire on Saturday.
Fireworks firm has a history: If news accounts are accurate, 45 people have been hurt in three different July 4th incidents involving displays put on by Schaefer Pyrotechnics of Ronks, Pennsylvania since 2004. The most recent was Sunday in Palmyra, Pennsylvania. Three years ago it was Vienna, Virginia. Before that the problem happened in Pittston, Pennsylvania.
We have video of the errant fireworks in Palmyra and Vienna. Click here.
Paying $5 a call to save the fire department: That’s the plan in Wallkill, New York where the Mechanicstown Fire District wants to increase the number of firefighters and hold on to the ones they have. The firefighters could earn up to $6,000-per-year. Firefighters would get that in lieu of a retirement program, arguing that the 18-year-olds they are recruiting aren’t looking 40-years down the road. The leadership of the department believes the poor economy is one factor in the loss of volunteers. The idea for this program is not without controversy. Here’s the story.
Four Scaramento firefighters were in or around this house when it blew up yesterday. Responding to a report of a gas leak, reports indicate the firefighters had shut gas and electricity to the house before it exploded. Investigators are now looking at the possibility this was a deliberate act. Click the image to read & watch the story.
Unfortunately it was that kind of weekend: Besides North Charleston and Sacramento we have a roundup of incidents from the holiday weekend where a number of firefighters were hurt and one from Wharton, Texas was killed. The details are here.
Radio traffic from deadly runaway horse at July 4th parade: Listen in as firefighters and EMS crews in Bellevue, Iowa deal with a tragic situation at a parade on Sunday that left a woman dead and many injured. Here’s the story.
Quiet Dell wasn’t so quiet: The West Virginia community had a little excitement at the Exxon station last Thursday when a car came off the roadway and hit a pump bursting into flames. The first arriving engine rolled in with the camera running. Here’s the video.
Firefighter/ arsonists – handling the problem: If you haven’t seen it yet, check out this article from FireEngineering.com on coming to grips with this fire service problem. Click here.
Interesting cause of gasoline tanker truck fire: In Flint, Michigan there was a deadly tanker collision on Saturday on I-475. It wasn’t the fire that caused the fataility. It was the other way around. A motorcyclist ran into the rear of the rig and was killed. The driver of the truck didn’t realize that had happened. The collision sheared off a valve allowing gasoline to leak. The truck burst into flames down the road a bit. Here’s the story.
Another roll over in Abilene, Texas: Firegeezer has the story of a runaway fire engine that rolled in Abilene on Friday. The same department also had a rush truck roll in 2009, an incident that was caught on video.
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