UPDATED: Fireground audio from explosion that rocked Cleveland neighborhood. 11 people hurt.
An entire city block was rocked by what is believed to be a gas leak, injuring 11 people, leveling three homes, damaging 20 others and leaving dozens of people looking for shelter.
A Cleveland Fire Department spokesman says the explosion happened in the area of E. 177th and Tarkington Avenue early Wednesday morning.
Fire crews evacuated the homes in the neighborhood and a nearby school while they checked gas levels in the area.
A spokesperson for Dominion East Ohio Gas says gas crews are on the scene and have turned off the gas to the area.
Several callers from as far away as Solon and Chagrin Falls tell Channel 3 they could feel the blast.
Several eyewitnesses tell Channel 3 News they could hear the explosion, some as far away as Maple Heights.
Fire, police and other emergency crew remain on the scene while investigators try to pinpoint the source and cause of the blast.
Some of the residents in the neighborhood are being let back to their homes. The Cleveland Fire Department is checking house-by-house to make sure there is no danger.
A temporary shelter for those unable to get back into their home will open at the Kennedy Recreation Center at E. 177th Street and Harvard Avenue.
The Cleveland Municipal School District is closing Emile B. Desauze located on E. 176th Street.
The American Red Cross is using Emile Desauze School for a reception center for displaced residents. Red Cross staff and volunteers will be available to meet with those affected by the explosion.
Doctors at MetroHealth Medical Center say they treated 11 people for minor scrapes and lacerations and all 11 were released by mid-afternoon Wednesday.
William Poe, 45, lived next door with his wife and five kids. He suffered a leg injury but is grateful that he and his family were not seriously injured.
Poe tells Channel 3 News he thought a plane hit his house.
