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An explosion in a tower in Baltimore injured 23 people Wednesday and temporarily trapped a window cleaning crew.
The explosion caused the roof to partially collapse, the Baltimore Fire Department tweeted. Twenty-one people were taken to hospital and two others refused treatment.
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A worker stands at the end of a suspended scaffolding as he waits to be rescued following an explosion at the offices of Baltimore Gas and Electric on Wednesday. Twenty-one of the victims were transported to hospitals in the area following the blast with partial roof collapse. City firefighters tweeted that at least nine of the victims were in critical condition, while another was in serious condition. (Jerry Jackson / The Baltimore Sun via AP)
The ministry responded to the downtown building, where the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company has offices, around 8:30 a.m. and two buildings on both sides were evacuated. The Fire Union tweeted that the evidence pointed to an explosion on the 16th floor.
Firefighters said the cause of the explosion was still under investigation. Utilities spokeswoman Stephanie Anne Weaver said work on the building’s “air handling and boiler system” likely caused the crash.
The explosion was unrelated to natural gas, Fox News said in a statement. “The building’s gas service was not active due to construction work.”
The trapped window workers were rescued through a window and firefighters continued to search the building on Wednesday afternoon.
“The window washing scaffolding was compromised as a result of the incident and a window cleaning crew was brought to safety by the fire department,” Weaver said in a statement. The building was practically empty because of the holidays and the coronavirus pandemic.
Damaged scaffolding hangs on the side of the Baltimore Gas and Electric building Wednesday in Baltimore. Twenty-one of the victims were transported to hospitals in the area following the blast with partial roof collapse. City firefighters tweeted that at least nine of the victims were in critical condition, while another was in serious condition. (Jerry Jackson / The Baltimore Sun via AP)
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Keith Osterman, 38, and Robert Friedel, 58, were working in a nearby building and were outside when they heard the explosion.
“It was loud and everything in here was shaking,” Osterman told the Baltimore Sun.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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