• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Gas blast wrecks New Jersey apartment building

Posted on: Tuesday, 13 December 2005, 13:48 CST

By Christine Kearney

BERGENFIELD, New Jersey (Reuters) - A gas explosion ripped through an apartment building in New Jersey on Tuesday, starting a huge fire and injuring at least five people when the building partially collapsed, rescue officials said.

An official at the Bergenfield Fire Department said at least six fire trucks from that department were on the scene and firefighters had also been called in from neighboring areas to battle the blaze which burned for several hours.

"There was a big explosion, there was a big fire and people were screaming 'Help me, help me,"' said David Coradin, 54, a resident in one of the 24 apartments.

He said he went to help two neighbors whose apartment was badly damaged with the roof collapsed. "I could see the sky," Coradin said. "The woman was screaming 'Nicholas is trapped."'

The woman, who suffered burns, escaped but the fate of her partner was not yet clear, Coradin said.

Bergenfield Mayor Richard Bohan said five or six people were injured in the blast, which happened around 9:30 a.m. (1430 GMT) and appeared to be linked to repair work in the vicinity.

"It appears that a company was removing a tank, after which there was an explosion," Bohan said. "There are injuries, we don't know if there are any fatalities."

It was not immediately clear if anyone was missing since firefighters were still fighting the blaze several hours after the explosion, he said.

The fire sent up a large cloud of black smoke that could be seen across the Hudson River in Manhattan.

A spokeswoman at Holy Name Hospital in the area said two patients had injuries classified as medium in severity -- one with chest pains, the other with neck and back injuries.

An official at Hackensack University Medical Center said another three patients were being treated there, but she declined to say how serious their injuries were.

The Red Cross set up an emergency center to take in those evacuated from the building, though it appeared that many of the residents were out at the time since the blast happened after many people had left for work or school.

The explosion rocked the neighborhood, a commuter-belt suburb across the water from New York City.

"It was the scariest thing I've ever been through," said nearby resident Anthony Sorrentino. "I've never seen a house shake like that ... the flames were enormous."

(Additional reporting by Claudia Parsons)

Source: REUTERS

More News in this Category