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An official walks near debris after an explosion Saturday in Plantation, Florida. About 20 people were reportedly injured in the blast.
Brynn Anderson / AP
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Brynn Anderson / AP
An official walks near debris after an explosion Saturday in Plantation, Florida. About 20 people were reportedly injured in the blast.
Brynn Anderson / AP
A Plantation, Florida, shopping center was rocked Saturday by an event announced by the city's fire department for "a possible gas explosion." He injured about 20 people and caused significant damage to several companies. No deaths were reported in the aftermath of the blast.
Wade Goodwyn, of NPR, reported that the blast, occurring in The Fountains shopping complex, had scattered debris scattered over hundreds of meters and had destroyed the roof of part of the complex. He would have been heard and felt for miles.
After the explosion, only part of the metal structure of a pizza restaurant remained; A.A. Fitness Gym located next door, which was occupied at the time of the explosion, had broken windows.
Guillermo Villa, who told ABC's Victor Oquendo that he was in a nearby car park at the time of the explosion, said pieces of the building had begun to fall on his head.
"I went under my car because there was so much debris flying and falling from the sky," said Villa. "It was raining big pieces of the roof, walls, bricks, everything."
Joel Gordon, battalion chief of the Plantation Fire Department, told reporters at an afternoon press conference that the department had received a call regarding the blast around around 11:28 am Saturday .
Gordon said his department had "about 15 to 20 patients," but had not officially confirmed the number of injuries. He stated that two of the patients had serious injuries and one of them had been classified as Level 1 trauma.
"A search was done on the building itself," Gordon said. "We are still looking for victims in the collapsed area, but at this point, we think we counted everyone."
Gordon said there was uncertainty about the number of people injured because the authorities still meet people who have left and then returned.
Gordon said that there was an active gas leak when the authorities arrived at the scene, where they discovered broken gas lines between the rubble. But officials have not yet determined that a gas leak was causing the explosion. Gordon also could not confirm the origin of the blast. The authorities cut the gas in the area surrounding the blast.
"As bad as it may be, the situation could have been much worse," said Gordon, noting that no deaths were confirmed on Saturday afternoon.
Gordon said that there was no visible flames. He said that the structure caught fire and that the fire was extinguished quickly.
This is a story in development. Some things reported by the media will later prove to be false. We will focus on the reports of police and other authorities, credible media outlets and journalists on the scene. We will update as the situation evolves.
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