FORT LAUDERDALE – A house exploded overnight in a West Park neighborhood, reducing it to rubble.
It happened in the 5200 block of Southwest 20th Street, just south of Pembroke Road.
Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue received word of the blast around 12:30 a.m.
“The home was completely destroyed, it appeared to be by some type of gas,” said Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Michael Kane.
The explosion could be heard for miles. Those who live in the neighborhood where it happened were stunned.
“I was in bed. I just heard this loud boom, this noise, I thought my water heater had blown up. I came to the front door and my grandson was there and he told me it was an explosion and I asked if he knew where it came from,” said Glen Seymour whose windows were broken.
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“I was inside watching a movie around 12 (a.m.) and I heard this loud explosion. It wasn’t like an earthquake, it was so impact(ful) that I thought the house was coming in on me. It was like two blocks away from me. Just a minute after that cops came, fire brigades, and the ambulance. I went down there to see what had happened. I was there like 20 minutes and I saw two kids on a stretcher and they went into an ambulance and they rushed them off,” said Adrian Moaatt.
As firefighters searched for individuals who may have been inside the residence, deputies evacuated nearby residences.
“In total, four patients were located. They appear to have all been living in the home where the explosion took place. Two of them were children, the other two were adults. All four patients were transferred to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood. Three of them were subsequently transferred to Jackson Memorial Hospital. Of the four, injuries include burns, traumatic injuries, broken bones, and things of that nature,” said Kane.
Multiple homes and cars in the area were damaged by the blast.
“At his point, we don’t know the source of the explosion, we just know that the explosion was caused by some type of gas,” said Kane.
The cause of the explosion is being investigated by the State Fire Marshal.
