At least two people were confirmed dead in the fireball late Wednesday at an apartment complex in Silver Spring, a suburb north of the nation’s capital.
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Authorities reported no fatalities, but crews had shifted into search mode Thursday morning, seeking to account for five to seven residents of the two adjacent buildings at the Flower Branch Apartments on Piney Branch Road.
“It felt like a huge bomb”, said one girl who witnessed the chaotic scene.
“Tragically, that doesn’t seem that that’s a possibility at this point”, Hamill said.
So far, authorities have found two unidentified victims in the wreckage of the blast and subsequent fire.
Piringer said people should avoid the part of Piney Branch Road near University of Boulevard, Flower Avenue and Arliss Street should be avoided for most of the day.
They cleared the scene at 10:32 p.m., Firestine said, and the county is still trying to determine who responded, what tests if any were conducted and why the scene was cleared.
The department said early Wednesday morning that the fire was believed to be under control. Hamill did not give a specific number and said the cause of the blast was still being investigated. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms was assisting the investigation.
Firefighters responded to the four-story complex in Silver Spring, shortly before midnight Wednesday and worked for nearly two hours to control the blaze. And at least 30 people, including three firefighters, were taken to the hospital.
The official cause of the fire has not been released, but some residents told NBC4 that they had smelled natural gas periodically in the days leading up to the explosion.
Washington Gas, a unit of WGL Holdings Inc, which provided service to the complex, said in a statement it was helping in the investigation. “Our thoughts are with the families impacted by this event”, the company said in a statement.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan pledged that the state would assist in any way necessary.
“People were dropping children and jumping out of other windows”, Goldstein said.
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Carden said the nature of the explosion was especially traumatic. She said two were admitted and three were to be released Thursday afternoon. Then, a fire that torched a four-story apartment building, forcing people to drop their children from balconies and firefighters to rescue trapped residents from upper floors. One was transferred and one was admitted for observation as a precaution.
