Brooklyn house explosion injures 4 people; gas leak from basement stove eyed as cause
EAST FLATBUSH, Brooklyn (WABC) -- Investigators are looking into whether a suspected stove malfunction sparked an explosion in the basement of a house in Brooklyn, which injured four relatives.
The explosion happened around 8:30 p.m. on Thursday on East 37th Street in East Flatbush.
While there was no fire, it left the home in shambles. The windows were blown out, shingles tattered, and the sidewalk and street were blanketed with glass.
A doorbell camera on neighbor Paulette Thompson's home caught the chaotic moments right after the house blew up just a few doors down from her.
Thompson says she saw two people hurt outside, but knew two more were inside.
"And those two that were inside that for the longest we saw no movement and we were concerned," Thompson said.
The big boom started in the basement of the home, according to officials.
When first responders arrived, two victims were on the street and another two were found on the top floor.
"I didn't want to go in the house. I didn't know what was happening," said neighbor Milredy Joseph. "The victims that did come out, I wanted them to get away from the house because we didn't know if there would be any secondary explosions or if something else would have transpired."
A 63-year-old man suffered serious burns to his legs, arms, and face. A 65-year-old man, a 73-year-old woman, and a 47-year-old woman all suffered minor burns. They were taken to Staten Island University Hospital.
"As a precaution, we've evacuated the occupancies to the left and to the right. We will also shut all the utilities down the street," said Tom Currao, Tour Commander, FDNY. "Quite a powerful explosion, ripped right through the dwelling. Caused significant damage to the back of the dwelling."
The Department of Buildings is investigating the stability of the structure. Three other homes nearby also appeared to have some damage.
"I have family in places so I was able to offload my father into one of those places. I just hung around until I got to see the buildings department people," said Leo Tam, impacted by home explosion. "It was like a loud explosion and a little bit of shaking."
He says he's hoping to get back into his nearby home soon.
Yanfen Chen lives next door to the home that exploded. She and her husband and a 3-and-a-half-month-old baby girl were ordered to vacate and are now without a home.
Meantime, Denise told Eyewitness News that her sister lives in the home on the other side of where the blast happened. She says her sister was told the house will have to be demolished.
"This is what has brought me to tears at this moment because we've had many family gatherings in here," Denise said.
As for the cause of the explosion, investigators zeroed in on a gas leak in the area of a basement stove. Investigators believe there was a natural leak in the gas pipe which was connected to the stove in the basement.
They are also looking into the basement's set up, and whether there were any violations.
Investigators have been unable to interview the two men who live in the basement due to the severity of their injuries.
The explosion is not believed to have been caused by street infrastructure
The FDNY says they are working with the NYPD, medical services, National Grid, Con Edison, and the Department of Buildings.
The investigation is ongoing.
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