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FARMINGTON, Maine (AP) – A strong propane explosion razed a newly constructed building after firefighters arrived to investigate the smell of gas Monday, killing a firefighter and injuring at least eight other people, including including other firefighters, officials said.
The blast was so powerful that she blew up a vehicle at an intersection and damaged nearby buildings. Paper, insulation and construction debris have rained in the area.
The explosion destroyed the two-story building that housed LEAP Inc., a non-profit organization that serves people with cognitive and intellectual disabilities, just a few months after its construction.
"It's a war zone .That's just a mess," said Scott Landry, a board member of Farmington Town Select. "The building is gone."
The explosion killed 68-year-old Fire Chief Michael Bell and injured his brother, Fire Chief Terry Bell; five other firefighters; a maintenance agent for LEAP; and an ambulance attendant, officials said.
Four of the firefighters were in the intensive care unit of the Maine Medical Center in Portland, while the attendant was being treated at a Boston hospital, officials said. A firefighter and the ambulance were treated and released.
The explosion occurred around 8:30 in the morning in this western Maine city, about 70 miles north of Portland.
The neighbors heard a thunderclap that shook the houses and dropped the images of the walls. The flying paper and dust gave the impression that the snowstorm had struck.
LEAP worker Lisa Charles, who lives in the street of the explosion site, was at home with her children when the explosion surprised the family.
She went out to see debris falling from the sky and feared the worst for her colleagues.
"I know everyone inside, I thought everyone was gone," she said. "They received a warning from the maintenance manager, who was a hero for telling them to evacuate."
Kim Hilton, who works in the Admissions Department at the University of Maine in Farmington, said she was scared when her building shook.
"It was as if someone had hit our building with a vehicle," she said.
Governor Janet Mills – of Farmington and whose office said she knew the deceased firefighter – ordered that the flags be dropped by half the staff in the state. Mills also visited the premises and promised that the state's fire marshal's office would conduct an investigation.
"We will get to the bottom of things as much as possible to protect this community, to protect all other communities and to ensure that this does not happen again," she told reporters.
The 40-by-60 building (12 meters by 18 meters), which served as LEAP's administrative office, opened eight to ten weeks ago and was not yet complete, M said. Landry.
The smell of gas was detected when the first workers arrived and the building was evacuated before most of the workers arrived for the day, he said.
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Sharp reported from Portland.
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