Mass. natural gas explosion damaged 42 buildings
Inspectors
stand in debris, Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012, at the site of a gas
explosion that leveled a strip club in Springfield, Mass., on Friday
evening. Investigators were trying to figure out what caused the blast
where the multi-story brick building housing Scores Gentleman's Club
once stood. / AP Photo/Jessica Hill
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. Preliminary investigations show more than 40 buildings were damaged in a natural gas explosion in Massachusetts that injured 18 people, building inspectors said Saturday.
A strip club was flattened and a day care center was heavily damaged in the massive explosion Friday night in Springfield, one of New England's biggest cities.
No one was killed in the explosion.
Investigators were trying Saturday to figure out what caused the blast that could be heard for miles, left a large hole in the ground where the multistory brick building housing Scores Gentleman's Club once stood and scattered debris over several blocks.
Officials already had evacuated part of the entertainment district after responding to a gas leak and odor reported about an hour before the explosion. Gas workers venting a gas leak got indications that the building was about to explode and they ducked for cover behind a utility truck — along with firefighters and police officers — just before the blast, said Mark McDonald, president of the New England Gas Workers Association.
Most of the injured were in that group, and the truck that saved their lives was essentially demolished, he said.
"It really is a miracle and it's an example of our public safety officials, each and every day, putting themselves in harm's way, taking what could have been considered a very routine call of an odor of gas, but they took the proper precautions," State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan said. "And thanks to God that they did."
Officials also marveled how the 5:30 p.m. blast occurred when a day care center next door was closed. The center's building was heavily damaged.
A damaged apartment building near the site of a
gas explosion that leveled a strip club in Springfield, Mass.,
Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012.
/
AP Photo/Jessica Hill
The explosion blew out windows in a three-block radius, leaving at least three buildings irreparably damaged and causing emergency workers to evacuate a six-story apartment building that was buckling, police said. Pieces of broken glass littered streets and sidewalks. It was unclear how many residents had been evacuated. A shelter was set up at a school, but city officials said no one stayed there overnight.
Omar Fermin, manager of the Punta Cana Restaurant two blocks from the explosion site, found the floor-to-ceiling windows blasted out when he came to check on the property Saturday morning.
"It looks like an earthquake hit," said Fermin, a native of the Dominican Republic. "I've never seen anything like it."
He said he was waiting for someone to come and assess the damage. He worried the restaurant would remain closed for weeks while the owner seeks to replace the massive custom-made windows.
Authorities cordoned off the center of the explosion Saturday as building inspectors worked to identify unsafe structures. Anxious residents gathered at the perimeter, waiting for permission to visit their buildings.
Preliminary reports show the blast damaged 42 buildings housing 115 residential units, said Thomas Walsh, spokesman for Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno.
Three buildings were immediately condemned, and 24 others require additional inspections by structural engineers to determine whether they are safe, Walsh said.
Dogs trapped in abandoned buildings barked loudly Saturday as building inspectors fanned out across the area. One inspector said he wished he could get a ladder and permission to retrieve a dog that was barking in the upper floor of one building sealed off from residents.
Authorities are opening an animal shelter for pets affected by the explosion, Walsh said.
Coan, the fire marshal, said his office is investigating the cause of the blast and its possible origin. The state's Department of Public Utilities was also investigating.
Sheila Doiron, a spokeswoman for Columbia Gas of Massachusetts, said the company will continue to monitor for any potential leaks within several blocks of the blast site. So far, she said, the company hadn't yet found any measurable readings.
The utility will keep at least 30 workers at the scene, along with a so-called sniffing car mounted with sophisticated gadgets capable of detecting low levels of gas leaks, Walsh said.
Doiron said the company also didn't find in its records any gas odor calls to the area where the strip club was located.
Authorities also deployed police officers throughout the area to prevent looting, Walsh said.
The victims were taken to two hospitals in the city. Those injured were nine firefighters, two police officers, four Columbia Gas workers, two civilians and another city employee.
Springfield, which is 90 miles west of Boston and has about 150,000 residents, is the largest city in western Massachusetts. It's known as the home of the Basketball Hall of Fame, which is not near the blast site.
The city has been rebuilding from damage caused by a tornado in June 2011.
Wayne Davis, who lives about a block from the destroyed building, said he felt his apartment shake.
"I was laying down in bed, and I started feeling the building shaking and creaking," he said.
The Navy veteran said the boom from the explosion was louder than anything he'd ever heard, including the sound of a jet landing on an aircraft carrier.
The blast was so loud it was heard in several neighboring communities. Video from WWLP-TV showed the moment of the explosion, with smoke billowing into the air above the neighborhood.
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Mass. natural gas explosion damaged 42 buildings
The thing that is most strange about this story is something almost like it occurred recently and I quoted it here:
The main difference is that one happened in Indianapolis and the other happened later in Massachusetts. It makes me wonder what if a drone missile explosion coming from above looks any different than a Natural Gas Explosion from within. If we see many more of these kinds of explosions I hope people are investigating and looking for these kinds of clues now in the U.S.
The reason for this is so many companies and police groups in the country now have their own aerial drones of one kind or another. So, we are now in a position where the dirty tricks campaigns of companies, for example, might eliminate competition in ways not seen before if they could get away with it.
However, even though this is now possible here in the U.S. by flying a quiet drone under the Radar it doesn't mean that it actually is happening, only that it now would be possible to do this possibly without detection if done at night.
For example, I was quietly minding my own business at the beach when a quiet electric powered Helicopter about 3 feet tall flew by me. I was sort of concerned at the time because I couldn't see who was flying this remote helicopter because they were about 1 block away over a sand dune. I had to walk 1/2 a block to see who was flying the thing so near to me. And this was in broad daylight. Also, it was a little intimidating because those top blades or rear rotor blades would have been potentially lethal to me, unless I laid down on the sand. So, it is interesting for all of us to know there now are all sort of things capable of launching almost anything at people or animals. I was looking at a catalog the other day and there was even a small electric helicopter designed for bombing people or whatever with tennis balls.
