A condo building exploded and caught fire Wednesday morning in Gaithersburg, injuring as many as 12 people, including four children.Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service spokesman Pete Piringer said a fire and explosion were reported around 8:40 a.m. at the Potomac Oaks condominium complex in the 800 block of Quince Orchard Boulevard. A second alarm was called as heavy fires were discovered upon arrival.”The building has sustained a significant explosion that resulted in a collapse,” Montgomery County Fire Chief Scott Goldstein said. The fire chief said as many as 12 people were injured — 10 were taken to hospitals, two of which were adults taken to a trauma center, four were adults and four were children who suffered “mild to moderate” injuries. Two others were treated at the scene and declined to be taken to a hospital.At 2 p.m., the fire chief said there was still a smoldering fire in the building and that Washington Gas shut off the gas supply to the affected buildings. The fire chief said there were no previous calls to this complex in the past week. The last call for a gas leak was made on Sept. 22.The fire chief said all of the occupants of 828 have been accounted for and contacted. There remains one unit in 826 for which officials have yet to make contact with the occupant.The chief said it’s too early to determine a cause or what contributed to the incident.Residents repeatedly told 11 News the incident “felt like a shockwave.””It was bad, just bad,” said Lilian Mendez, a resident who was among the witnesses who described feeling the explosion and fire.”It was really loud at one time. So, it was like when they drop a dumpster. That’s what it sounded like. But you could feel it like a tractor-trailer came through, that’s what it felt like. Like, it was just a parade of tractor-trailers, that’s what I felt. I didn’t know what was going on,” said Genee Willis, a witness. “It felt like a bomb. I mean, you actually felt a shockwave. It wasn’t just, you know, something was suddenly on fire and you heard a boom. You could feel it when it happened. It was, it was just crazy.”Firefighters evacuated neighboring buildings after the collapse, and the Red Cross is assisting displaced residents, Goldstein said. The Red Cross issued a statement, saying its trained volunteers are providing essential services that include food, water, financial resources, emotional support and the replacement of medications, according to need.Video below: 2 p.m. news conference from Montgomery CountyMore than 100 firefighters and rescue personnel responded to the scene.Gov. Larry Hogan tweeted shortly before 11 a.m., saying: “The State Fire Marshal and the Maryland State Police Rockville Barrack have offered assistance with the response to this explosion.”U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, posted a statement on Facebook, saying: “I’m thinking of everyone impacted by the fire in Gaithersburg and grateful to our first responders on the scene. My office is in close contact with local officials and have offered them — and the families who are impacted — any assistance we can provide.”Video below: LIVE update from 11 News at NoonVideo below: SkyTeam 11 shows the scene
A condo building exploded and caught fire Wednesday morning in Gaithersburg, injuring as many as 12 people, including four children.
Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service spokesman Pete Piringer said a fire and explosion were reported around 8:40 a.m. at the Potomac Oaks condominium complex in the 800 block of Quince Orchard Boulevard. A second alarm was called as heavy fires were discovered upon arrival.
“The building has sustained a significant explosion that resulted in a collapse,” Montgomery County Fire Chief Scott Goldstein said.
The fire chief said as many as 12 people were injured — 10 were taken to hospitals, two of which were adults taken to a trauma center, four were adults and four were children who suffered “mild to moderate” injuries. Two others were treated at the scene and declined to be taken to a hospital.
At 2 p.m., the fire chief said there was still a smoldering fire in the building and that Washington Gas shut off the gas supply to the affected buildings. The fire chief said there were no previous calls to this complex in the past week. The last call for a gas leak was made on Sept. 22.
The fire chief said all of the occupants of 828 have been accounted for and contacted. There remains one unit in 826 for which officials have yet to make contact with the occupant.
The chief said it’s too early to determine a cause or what contributed to the incident.
Residents repeatedly told 11 News the incident “felt like a shockwave.”
“It was bad, just bad,” said Lilian Mendez, a resident who was among the witnesses who described feeling the explosion and fire.
“It was really loud at one time. So, it was like when they drop a dumpster. That’s what it sounded like. But you could feel it like a tractor-trailer came through, that’s what it felt like. Like, it was just a parade of tractor-trailers, that’s what I felt. I didn’t know what was going on,” said Genee Willis, a witness. “It felt like a bomb. I mean, you actually felt a shockwave. It wasn’t just, you know, something was suddenly on fire and you heard a boom. You could feel it when it happened. It was, it was just crazy.”
Firefighters evacuated neighboring buildings after the collapse, and the Red Cross is assisting displaced residents, Goldstein said. The Red Cross issued a statement, saying its trained volunteers are providing essential services that include food, water, financial resources, emotional support and the replacement of medications, according to need.
Video below: LIVE update from 11 News at Noon
More than 100 firefighters and rescue personnel responded to the scene.
Gov. Larry Hogan tweeted shortly before 11 a.m., saying: “The State Fire Marshal and the Maryland State Police Rockville Barrack have offered assistance with the response to this explosion.”
U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, posted a statement on Facebook, saying: “I’m thinking of everyone impacted by the fire in Gaithersburg and grateful to our first responders on the scene. My office is in close contact with local officials and have offered them — and the families who are impacted — any assistance we can provide.”
This story will be updated.
Video below: SkyTeam 11 shows the scene
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