At least two people killed and multiple trapped as explosion rips through a Pennsylvania nursing home

At least two people died in a giant explosion at a nursing home in Pennsylvania, while social media videos showed black smoke rising over the facility.

Around 2:17 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, the explosion tore through the Bristol Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Bristol County, just outside Philadelphia.

Along with the deaths, Gov. Josh Shapiro announced at a news conference that many people were still unaccounted for by first responders.

“This is a very, very tragic moment for this community,” Shapiro told reporters a few hours after the disaster. ‘Investigations are ongoing into what caused the explosion… We believe it was caused by a gas leak in the first place.’

First responders and emergency management officials in the area came to this conclusion because there was a strong odor of gas.

Shapiro said the gas leak theory will be examined further by investigators with the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission, who arrived on the scene after the explosion.

But Nils Hagen-Frederiksen, press secretary for the Pennsylvania Public Service Commission, said that would not be confirmed until the agency closely examined the scene. Associated Press.

The explosion was labeled a mass casualty incident by Upper Makefield Township. According to the statement, 21 people were injured WPVI.

The explosion was labeled a mass casualty incident by Upper Makefield Township. The number of injured is not yet known

While the teams went to the scene, law enforcement asked the public to stay away from the area.

“We understand there are people trapped inside,” Ruth Miller, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, said earlier. CBS Philadelphia.

According to its website, the nursing home has 174 beds, but it remains unclear how many patients and staff were in the building at the time of the explosion.

State Representative Tina Davis, who is in the area where the nursing home is located, described the scene after the explosion.

“I saw smoke and I saw car after car coming from all over the city, fire engines or ambulances,” he told the AP.

“This is very sad,” Davis told the press. ‘This is the hopeful time of year.’

‘This is a sad thing for everyone, the families and the workers there. I hope there will be positive results from this. We don’t know that right now.’

District buses transported people from the nursing home’s emergency area to the reunification center at nearby Truman High School. Authorities worked on setting up beds and providing water to those in need, as well as other basic needs.

Silver Lake Health Center is located approximately 25 miles or one hour north of Philadelphia. According to the website it had 174 beds

Pennsylvania Representative Tina Davis described the scene after the explosion as “car after car” was seen, with fire trucks and ambulances “coming from all over the city.”

This comes as a clearer picture emerges of how the explosion may have occurred.

Musuline Watson, who said she was a certified nursing assistant at the nursing home, told WPVI she smelled gas over the weekend.

The facility was also found to be out of compliance with several state regulations, according to an October state inspection report.

The inspection report did not say anything about the gas leak, but it did note that portable fire extinguishers were not kept on one of the nursing home’s three floors, according to the AP.

He also accused the facility of failing to provide ‘smoke barrier baffles’ that, if properly installed, could contain smoke up to two floors.

Another concerning finding was that the facility did not properly store oxygen tanks on two of the three floors. Although oxygen itself is not flammable, oxygen can cause gas fires to burn more intensely and cause explosions.

The facility last underwent a fire safety inspection in September 2024, according to Medicare.gov. No problems found.

However, Medicare rated the nursing home as ‘well below average’ due to poor quality health inspections.