Associated Press
ORION TOWNSHIP, Mich. — An explosion possibly caused by a natural gas leak rocked a suburban Detroit condominium, damaging other units, sparking fires and leaving two people seriously injured, officials said.
Orion Township Fire Chief Ryan Allen said two people were hospitalized with critical injuries following Tuesday evening’s explosion in the Oakland County township northwest of Detroit, and two others had minor injuries.
Allen told reporters at the scene that “possibly or probably a gas leak” led to the explosion, based on initial reports after the blast about 6:30 p.m., but the cause remained under investigation.
One condo building exploded, causing significant damage to another building and what appeared to be minor damage to two or three other buildings at the complex, Allen said.
The two people who were critically injured were a 72-year-old man and a 75-year-old woman, according to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Orion Township Supervisor Chris Barnett told the newspaper that officials evacuated at least 15 condo units at the Keatington New Town Association. He said the blast blew out windows, leaving one building shifted off its foundation while a portion of the condo that exploded was still standing.
“It looks like something in a movie. We have lots of people homeless,” Barnett said.
The explosion brought firefighters from nine surrounding departments.
Officials said two people who were unaccounted after the explosion were later found and were not in the building when the explosion happened, WXYZ-TV reported.