Sixteen members of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department SWAT team were injured Wednesday afternoon in an explosion at an FBI training facility in Irvine, according to authorities.
The explosion occurred around 1 p.m. in a small building at the Jerry Crowe Regional Tactical Training Facility, according to Sheriff’s Sgt. Frank Gonzalez.
The SWAT team was conducting its annual joint training with a bomb squad at the time, he said. The FBI wasn’t involved and had lent them the facility for the exercise.
Fifteen people were taken to hospitals. One person sustained a leg injury that will require surgery but is not life-threatening. Two others have superficial wounds, including back and leg injuries. The 13 other people went to the hospital as a precaution because of dizziness and ringing in their ears, but many have already been discharged.
Two members of the Los Angeles Fire Department are “making progress” after sustaining critical injuries while fighting a semi-truck fire that led to an explosion on Thursday, according to a department spokesperson.
Nine firefighters were injured in Wilmington by the catastrophic explosion of a tank of compressed natural gas used to power the truck, including two who were hospitalized, fire officials said.
One of those firefighters was discharged Friday night, and another is “critical but stable” and remains in the intensive care unit at Los Angeles General Medical Center, which operates a burn unit, Los Angeles Fire Department Public Information Officer Erik Scott said in a statement Saturday.
The latter firefighter has been taken off a ventilator, Scott said.
“With a happy heart and a sense of relief, we are pleased to report that our most injured #LAFD #Firefighter was successfully extubated this morning. He is awake, alert and talking. Next steps will be to introduce food as tolerated,” Scott posted to X.
The other seven firefighters “have various medical appointments and remain off duty due to their injuries,” Scott said. Some of the firefighters sustained burns, blunt-force trauma, injuries from shrapnel and hearing problems from the explosion, he said.
The cause of the explosion, which shot 30-foot flames into the air early Thursday morning at 1120 Alameda St., is still under investigation.
Firefighters responded after receiving a call that the truck had caught fire. The driver was unharmed and told officials she stopped driving after noticing “abnormalities” with the vehicle.
One firefighter is dead, nine others are injured, and two civilians are in the hospital Friday night after a home explosion in Sterling, Virginia.
James Williams, the Assistant Chief of Operations for the Loudoun County Fire Department speaking to reporters in Sterling, Virginia, on February 16, 2024.(Courtesy, 7News)
James Williams, the Assistant Chief of Operations for the Loudoun County Fire Department speaking to reporters in Sterling, Virginia, on February 16, 2024.(Courtesy, 7News)
One firefighter is dead, nine others are injured, and two civilians are in the hospital Friday night after a home explosion in Sterling, Virginia. Their injuries ranged from limited to severe.
Loudoun County officials confirmed the blast, which terrified residents and prompted calls to WTOP.
James Williams, the assistant chief of operations for Loudoun County’s fire department, spoke to reporters about the incident during a press briefing just before 11 p.m.
He said firefighters responded to the scene at around 7:30 p.m. after receiving reports of a fire in the 300 Block of Silver Ridge Drive.
“Soon after arrival, with firefighters inside, the house did explode,” Williams said.
As for the home: “Total devastation. There’s a debris field well into the street and into the neighboring homes,” he told reporters.
Firefighters on the scene of a confirmed house explosion in Loudoun County. (Courtesy 7News/SkyTrak7)
Officials did not identify the firefighter killed in the blaze during the press conference but did say the broader community, including peers in nearby jurisdictions, was deeply affected by the incident.
“It’s a huge physical and emotional toll on everyone associated with the fire department. Obviously, the people who are trapped, the rescuers that are going in to try to pull them out, the incident commander,” Williams said.
“This is going to be an extended scene complicated by the weather,” Williams said at the conclusion of the briefing.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms has joined the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Department as they work to determine what specifically caused the blast.
Community members feel effects of explosion
Footage from WTOP news partners at 7News and Chopper7 showed firefighters and first responders searching the rubble of a home on Silver Ridge Drive in Sterling.
By around 9 p.m., social media users were still trying to figure out what happened, with one person in Sterling saying: “Enormous boom shook the whole house just now. Ran upstairs, outside with flashlights and all the neighbors were doing the same. Apparently, a house exploded on a street nearby.”
John Padgett, a neighbor living just down the road from the explosion, told reporters he smelled gas while walking his dog Friday evening. The explosion, he said, shook the whole house.
“It was a huge explosion,” Padgett said, adding that “it looked like an inferno,” and insulation fell like ash. “It was horrific. It looked like something out of a war zone.”
Another call came in for a report of a structure fire at 8:25 p.m., with an ambulance responding at around the same time.
“A large explosion noise was felt in Cascades/Sterling area at 8:25 pm,” a listener wrote to WTOP. “It shook everyone’s houses to the extent they all shook, and we all thought a tree hit our individual houses.”
WTOP listeners as far away as Montgomery County, Maryland, reported a loud boom at around the same time that the Loudoun County home caught fire.
“Shook houses for 15 miles from Germantown/Gaithersburg/Rockville,” another listener writes.
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One firefighter was killed — and at least nine other firefighters and two civilians injured — in a massive home explosion in Northern Virginia’s Loudoun County Friday night, officials said.
In a news briefing, Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Assistant Chief of Operations James Williams said that fire crews were first called to the home in the community of Sterling at about 7:40 p.m. local time.
“Soon after arrival, with firefighters inside, the house did explode,” Williams said.
One firefighter was killed in the explosion, the assistant chief disclosed. The victim’s name was not released. Nine other firefighters and two civilians were rushed to area hospitals.
“The nine firefighters have some serious injuries, as well as some less severe injuries,” Williams said.
Aerial footage from CBS affiliate WUSA-TV showed widespread debris from the explosion, with heavy flames burning and smoke billowing hundreds of feet into the air.
“Total devastation, there’s a debris field well into the street and into neighboring homes,” said Williams, but he could not immediately confirm the extent of the damage to surrounding properties.
Williams said all firefighters were now “out of the building,” adding that the “fire will continue to smolder for an undetermined amount of time.”
The circumstances leading up to the explosion were unclear, and Williams wouldn’t speculate on the cause, only saying that it was under investigation. However, the Sterling Volunteer Fire Company had reported on social media that it had responded to a gas leak at the same address a little before 7:40 p.m.
Local utility provider Washington Gas said in a statement to CBS News that it was “verifying the integrity of our system in the surrounding area.”
Sterling is located about 25 miles northwest of Washington, D.C.
Faris Tanyos is a news editor for CBSNews.com, where he writes and edits stories and tracks breaking news. He previously worked as a digital news producer at several local news stations up and down the West Coast.
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A security guard sits at Houston Street and Eighth Street on Jan. 13, 2024, after Houston Street was opened following cleanup from the explosion in the Sandman Signature Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas. Twenty-one people were injured in the explosion.
Bob Booth
Special to the Star-Telegram
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The Fort Worth Fire Department has stepped back from leading the investigation into the Jan. 8 explosion at the Sandman Signature Hotel and turned control of the property over to the hotel’s owner, Northland Properties, officials said.
The fire department investigated the criminal and public safety aspects of the explosion on behalf of the city. The initial investigation “revealed no indication of a criminal nexus or a recurring public safety concern,” fire officials said in a letter Wednesday to interested parties including the defendants and plaintiffs in lawsuits related to the explosion.
Fort Worth Fire Department spokesperson Craig Trojacek told the Star-Telegram on Saturday that the department’s investigation isn’t complete. It’s stepping back so other parties can conduct investigations needed for the multiple civil lawsuits connected with the explosion, which authorities have said was linked to a natural gas leak believed to have started in or near the basement.
“It’s going to be a collaborative effort,” Trojacek said of the ongoing investigation.
“Investigators with the Fort Worth Fire Department Arson and Bomb Division will continue monitoring the progress of the investigation, including all site examinations, as an interested party,” the letter says.
The investigation into the exact origin and cause of the blast is expected to be complicated and lengthy. If at any point anything is uncovered to indicate the explosion was caused by or involved “criminal intent,” the fire department will take the investigation back over, according to Trojacek.
The fire department’s letter states that the other parties should coordinate their investigations and reach agreements on issues including access to the site and handling of evidence, “affording an opportunity for all to investigate the incident and to protect their respective interests.”
On Thursday, Northland Properties filed a court document indicating the hotel owner has reached an agreement with natural gas supplier Atmos in regard to preserving evidence at the scene of the explosion. The Rule 11 agreement has been filed in every lawsuit in which Northland and Atmos are parties, including a suit in which Atmos has sought to place the blame on the hotel owner.
The document states that Northland and Atmos anticipate working with other parties, including the attorneys for injured employees and guests who are suing, to agree on plans for a joint investigation.
According to the terms of the Rule 11 agreement, Northland won’t take any action or permit any entity under its control to do anything “that would alter, modify, or destroy any condition or item currently existing in the basement area of the building” without giving Atmos written notice three business days in advance.
Atmos agreed not to take any action to “alter, modify, or destroy” the gas line “that runs along 8th Street between Houston and Throckmorton Streets and the supply line branching off that line to supply gas to the Hotel” without providing Northland with written notice three business days in advance.
Atmos representatives can participate in investigations of the hotel’s first floor and basement conducted by Northland or “any representative or expert for any other party in the lawsuits in which this Rule 11 Agreement is filed.”
Atmos won’t be allowed to access the hotel except for the reasons mentioned in the agreement, written permission by Northland or by court order.
Northland representatives can participate in Atmos’ investigation of its hotel gas supply line.
The final stipulation of the agreement is that “Atmos Energy shall withdraw or nonsuit its currently pending request for injunctive relief in this case,” according to the document.
Atmos Energy wrapped up its initial investigation into the explosion on Jan. 12 and said it found no evidence that its lines or equipment caused the blast. In spite of those findings, Atmos has been named as a defendant in at least nine lawsuits filed on behalf of 33 plaintiffs. The hotel owners’ insurance company has also made several claims against Atmos related to the explosion, according to the lawsuit Atmos filed against Northland.
According to Atmos, someone at the Sandman hotel called the gas company to report a leak about 11 minutes before the blast. The Atmos representative told the caller to evacuate the building, but there’s no evidence the hotel staff tried to follow those instructions, the company’s lawsuit against Northland Properties states. Atmos argues that the leak originated inside the building, for which the property owner is responsible.
The lawsuit filed in Tarrant County asked the court to declare that Atmos holds no liability for the explosion. As part of the agreement, Atmos withdrew its request for the court to stop the fire department from releasing control of the scene to Northland.
In another one of the lawsuits, a Dallas County judge on Jan. 12 signed a temporary restraining order preventing cleanup of debris at the Sandman Signature Hotel to preserve evidence due to a lawsuit from José Mira, an employee of the basement-level Musume restaurant who was injured in the explosion.
The restraining order was originally granted for one week, but was later extended. It expired on Friday.
Related stories from Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Harriet Ramos covers crime and other breaking news for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
… Monday. Under current state law, marijuana establishments must pay a community … the costs imposed by the marijuana establishment. “Reasonably related” means there … offset the operation of a marijuana establishment. Those costs could include …
A severed leg in the parking lot. Bloodied victims in spa robes. A burned-out shell where an Aliso Viejo business used to be.
The grisly aftermath of a 2018 explosion that rocked Orange County was laid out at a sentencing hearing in federal court for Stephen William Beal — convicted last year of planting a homemade package bomb that killed his ex-girlfriend and injured two others.
During the Friday hearing in downtown Los Angeles, 64-year-old Beal, dressed in a white prison jumpsuit, said he would “always maintain my innocence in this case.”
Soon afterward, Judge Josephine L. Staton handed down a life sentence, plus an additional 30 years, after noting that Beal had not taken responsibility for the crime.
“The cold, calculating nature of this crime is chilling,” Staton said to a courtroom of more than two dozen people, including victims, reporters and law enforcement. “The court believes the defendant is likely to remain a danger to the public for the rest of his life.”
Outside the courthouse after the verdict, U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said Beal had murdered his ex-girlfriend, Ildiko Krajnyak, “in one of the most depraved and despicable ways possible.”
“Justice has been served,” Estrada said. “Mr. Beal will spend the rest of his days in a federal penitentiary.”
FBI and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department investigate an explosion at a day spa in Aliso Viejo in May 2018.
(Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
On May 15, 2018, Krajnyak opened a cardboard box she found at her day spa, Magyar Kozmetika. The resulting blast caused the 48-year-old’s midsection, arms and hands to disintegrate, according to prosecutors.
A mother and daughter who were inside the spa when the bomb went off escaped the burning building through a blown-out wall. They were both hospitalized and one of them lost an eye because of shrapnel.
At a four-week trial last year, evidence showed Beal became obsessed with Krajnyak after she tried to distance herself from him. At one point, prosecutors said, Beal threatened to kill himself after Krajnyak said she needed space.
Ildiko Krajnyak, 48, was killed by a package bomb sent by Stephen William Beal, who was convicted last year.
(U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California)
On a trip to Portugal two months before the explosion, Beal examined Krajnyak’s phone and discovered she’d been seeing other men. During the trip, he took pictures of her text messages with one of them.
Beal had access to the spa, knowledge of Krajnyak’s habits, and “decades of experience in rocketry,” combining skill in electronics and chemistry that made it possible to build a bomb without blowing himself up, Assistant U.S. Atty. Mark Takla said during the trial.
When investigators searched Beal’s home after the explosion, they found more than 130 pounds of explosive precursor chemicals, explosive mixtures and wires of the same type found in the ceiling at the blast site.
During the trial, defense attorney Meghan Blanco had described her client as “nothing more than a hobbyist” who tinkered with rockets and pyrotechnics, and said authorities had rushed to judgment.
“Is it a very common hobby? No,” she said. “Does it make Mr. Beal a bomber? No.”
In July, jurors found Beal guilty of using a weapon of mass destruction resulting in death and three other felonies related to the blast.
During his sentencing, Beal continued trying to deflect blame, telling the judge, “I just wish the person who actually committed this crime was sitting here, not me.”
Beal kept his back turned as victims shared the trauma they had endured after the blast, including fear of opening mail and hearing loud noises.
Rebekah Radomski, who was working at a mental health clinic near the salon at the time of the blast, described the “sheer terror of this near-death experience.”
“To this day, it remains truly challenging to rationalize how because a man had his feelings hurt by a former lover, he reacted with cowardly violence and zero regard for human life,” Radomski said. “He deserves to never see the light of day again except from a prison yard.”
Krajnyak’s cousin, Eva Boni, said Beal had “single-handedly destroyed my family.”
Takla, the U.S. attorney, called it “a miracle” that the two women inside the spa had survived. He read a letter from one of them, who described her physical disfigurement, scarring and hearing loss. Less visible, she wrote, is the emotional trauma.
“Fear has become my foundation and worry my reality,” she wrote. “I’m a different, lesser version of who I used to be.”
Outside the courthouse after the verdict, O.C. Sheriff Don Barnes criticized Beal for continuing to proclaim his innocence.
“It was an insult to the criminal justice process that he did that,” Barnes said. “We have the right guy, we had the right guy all along. He got a fair trial, he’s held accountable, he will die in prison one day.”
FORT WORTH – At least 11 people were injured Monday following a possible gas explosion at a downtown Fort Worth hotel, according to the fire department.
The first call came in at 3:32 p.m., followed by multiple calls reporting a “type of explosion” at the Sandman Hotel, located at 810 Houston St., according to the Fort Worth Fire Department.
There are as many as 11 patients, according to MedStar. One patient is reported as critically injured and two are seriously injured. All of the patients have minor injuries. Nine patients have been transported to local hospitals.
Three of those injured were employees of Musume, the restaurant inside the Sandman Hotel.
“All of us at Musume are devastated by the tragic explosion that took place this afternoon at the Sandman Signature Hotel, which is the home of our restaurant,” said Josh Babb, co-founder of Musume. “Luckily, Musume was closed during the time of the explosion, so we had no customers dining and limited employees working. Three Musume employees were injured, but are being treated in the hospital and in stable condition.”
Although the area smelled like gas following the explosion, the initial cause is still under investigation, said Craig Trojacek, the public information officer for the FWFD.
“There is a smell of gas here in downtown. We’re not sure if the smell of gas was caused from the explosion or the fire itself, or if that’s what caused the explosion,” Trojacek said.
Fort Worth Police said a family reunification area is at Sundance Square, located at 420 Main St.
All Tarrant County offices in downtown are now closed.
Jason Allen spoke to a man who was in the hotel at the time of the explosion. He did not want to go on camera, but said there was a smell of natural gas before the explosion, and he remembered asking one of his teammates, “Do you smell natural gas?”
He said the scent wasn’t strong, but they smelled it. He said the smell came from beneath them.
Then, the whole second floor filled with dust and smoke. They could see the red exit sign and found the stairwell. He told CBS News Texas that when he and the people he was with got to the stairwell, most of it was missing so they jumped five or six feet down and were able to make their way out of the building.
Jason Allen said natural gas can still be smelled in the area. Trojacek said crews will continue to search the building and make sure everyone is evacuated.
Governor Greg Abbott released the following statement:
“The State of Texas is in close contact with Mayor Parker, Sheriff Waybourn, and other local partners and first responders in Fort Worth to assist with emergency response efforts following the tragic explosion at the Sandman Hotel. We continue to monitor the situation and stand ready to immediately deploy any additional personnel and resources needed to keep Texans in the area safe and out of harm’s way. Cecilia and I ask all Texans to pray for those who were injured in the explosion, as well as those bravely responding to keep others safe.”
WHITMORE LAKE, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) — Three people were killed and three others injured in a massive house explosion Saturday afternoon in the community of Northfield Township near Detroit, authorities said.
Northfield Township Police and Michigan State Police responded to a report of an explosion at a single-family home in a rural area of the Whitmore Lake neighborhood at around 4 p.m. Saturday. Northfield Township is located about 45 miles west of Detroit.
The explosion happened on Winters Lane and could be heard in Jackson, about nine miles away, according to Northfield Township police Lt. Dave Powell. Debris was also found on the other side of US-23.
No nearby homes were damaged, Powell said.
The identities of the three people killed were not immediately released. The three people injured were hospitalized, according to authorities. Their conditions were unknown.
Luke Laster
It was unknown if children were inside the home at the time of the explosion, and if any of the victims were related, Powell said.
A video posted to social media by Nate Mark captured parts of the explosion.
The cause of the explosion is still unknown, Powell disclosed.
“We don’t know,” Powell told reporters. “Maybe some type of gas explosion? Our officers got a call that someone found debris on the other side of 23-mile with some paperwork on it, and it was debris from the house explosion.”
Natural gas company DTE Energy responded to ensure the scene was safe, as did local fire and hazmat crews.
Power was also shut off to the area, Powell said.
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At least three people were killed and seven wounded in a bomb attack on a Catholic mass in the insurgency-plagued southern Philippines on Sunday, officials said.
The blast took place during a regular service at Mindanao State University’s gymnasium in Marawi, the country’s largest Muslim city, regional police Chief Allan Nobleza said.
“We’re investigating if it’s an IED or grenade throwing,” Nobleza said, referring to an improvised explosive device.
Mindanao State University issued a statement condemning “the act of violence,” as it suspended classes and deployed more security personnel on the campus.
“We stand in solidarity with our Christian community and all those affected by this tragedy,” the university said in a statement.
Photos posted on the Lanao del Sur provincial government’s Facebook page showed Governor Mamintal Adiong visiting “wounded victims of the bombing” at a medical facility.
The incident came after the Philippines military launched an airstrike Friday that killed 11 Islamist militants from the Dawlah Islamiyah-Philippines organisation in Mindanao.
The military said Saturday the group had been planning to mount attacks in Maguindanao del Sur province.
Nobleza said police were investigating whether Sunday’s attack was linked to Friday’s airstrike.
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The FBI‘s conclusion that a car explosion near a bridge linking the United States and Canada was not a terrorist incident has sparked claims on social media of a conspiracy to cover up the true nature of the incident.
Two people were killed after their vehicle exploded on Wednesday afternoon at the Rainbow Bridge, which straddles the two nations’ sides of the Niagara Falls. The incident prompted the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to shut down three other crossings between New York and Canada out of an abundance of caution.
The explosion prompted many—including several lawmakers, such as Reps. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) and Ronny Jackson (R-Texas)—to presume the incident was terror-related.
However, in a statement on Wednesday night, the FBI field office in Buffalo, New York, said it had “concluded our investigation at the scene” which “revealed no explosive materials, and no terrorism nexus was identified.”
View of the Rainbow Bridge border crossing into the U.S. in Niagara Falls, Ontario, after a car exploded at a U.S.-Canada checkpoint on November 22, 2023. The FBI have determined the explosion was not terror-related. PETER POWER/AFP via Getty Images
It added: “The matter has been turned over to the Niagara Falls Police Department as a traffic investigation.”
After visiting the scene, New York Governor Kathy Hochul wrote the same evening that there was “no evidence of terrorism indicated at this time.”
While Customs and Border Protection has released CCTV footage from the border crossing clearly showing a car traveling at a high speed veering off the road and flying into the air, many on social media expressed skepticism towards the FBI’s quick conclusion, while referencing the Las Vegas mass shooting in 2017, in which the gunman Stephen Paddock’s motive for killing 60 people has never been definitively determined.
CBP is working closely with @FBI, federal, state & local partners in response to a vehicle explosion at Rainbow Bridge which remains closed. Out of abundance of caution, CBP temporarily suspended inbound/outbound traffic at 3 other Buffalo crossings that have since reopened. pic.twitter.com/pTXyUsavRB
“Wow! The FBI concludes their investigation after half a day, and yet we still don’t know anything about the Vegas shooter,” one X, formerly Twitter, user wrote.
“Just like that, they’ve concluded their investigation…” another said, while a further user, a self-described “America First culture warrior,” commented: “Look how efficient you are when you want to shut things down.”
“Maybe it’s just me, but I highly doubt they’d tell us what was in the vehicle unless the perps were ‘right wing’,” Chris DellaCroce, purportedly a former U.S. Marine, responded to the statement. “All leftist attackers are protected and their motives are usually hidden. That’s the playbook.”
Newsweek approached the FBI field office in Buffalo via phone on Thursday, and was told it would respond after the holiday.
Meanwhile, another user, Holli Winters, wrote: “Shame on people for calling the FBI liars and believing conspiracy theories. There is a family grieving the death of their loved ones who were in the car.”
SpaceX’s Starship Mars rocket and spacecraft launched for the second time early Saturday morning, making it through lift-off and a planned separation of the uncrewed ship and rocket booster before both ended up exploding.
The massive Starship rocket launched around 5:03 a.m. Pacific from SpaceX’s launch facility near Boca Chica, Texas. On a livestream of the launch, SpaceX employees tempered viewers’ expectations, warning that the company didn’t expect to recover any hardware for future re-flight from either rocket booster or launch, even in the best case scenario.
The stated goal, employees said, was to make it to separation of the rocket booster and the Starship craft.
The Hawthorne company has added a new, hot-stage separation system into the rocket, in which the rocket booster keeps a few engines burning while the spaceship ignites all of its engines to get more boost. Though it puts more pressure on the booster, the complicated procedure is intended to increase the carrying capacity for the ship.
About three minutes after lift-off, the booster and ship did successfully separate, but the booster broke apart shortly after. The Starship craft continued to ascend, but about nine minutes after lift-off, the company said it lost data from the craft.
The company said it believes the automated flight termination system on the ship was triggered “very late in the burn” as it headed over the Gulf of Mexico, said John Insprucker, a longtime SpaceX employee who frequently appears on the company’s livestream to give technical updates and explanations. The automated flight termination system is a safety mechanism embedded in the rocket’s software that destroys the vehicle if it senses that its course or performance is awry or unsafe.
Though the flight did not reach completion, company employees on the livestream called it “an incredibly successful day” that would yield data for future improvements.
That explosion, too, was triggered by the rocket’s autonomous flight termination system.
SpaceX said at the time that Starship started going off course during that flight due to a propellant leak in the rocket’s booster, which affected the main flight computer and resulted in a loss of communications. That led to the majority of the booster’s engines going out.
After that test flight, the Federal Aviation Administration ordered SpaceX to make fixes to the rocket, including redesigning its hardware to prevent leaks and fires. On Wednesday, the FAA said it authorized Starship’s second test flight. The company said it has put into place “leak mitigations” and improved its engine and rocket booster testing.
SpaceX also said it made “significant reinforcements” of the launch pad’s foundation and added a flame deflector intended to prevent future launch pad damage.
SpaceX Starship is poised for its launch attempt.
(Scott Schilke / Associated Press)
Starship is key to SpaceX’s future business plans and the U.S.’s return to the moon. SpaceX is under contract with NASA to develop the Starship spacecraft into a lunar lander for NASA’s Artemis program.
The company also plans to eventually phase out its workhorse Falcon 9 rocket in favor of the much larger Starship, which it also envisions for use in missions to Mars.
SpaceX also intends to expand its Starlink broadband internet network through Starship launches, which will be able to carry many more satellites than the Falcon 9 or Falcon Heavy rockets.
An explosion Wednesday at a chemical plant in Shepherd, Texas, caused a fire that left one worker with minor injuries and forced the evacuation of a nearby school.
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Hundreds of people were killed in an explosion at a hospital in Gaza. Israeli and Gaza authorities are blaming each other for the blast. Charlie D’Agata has the latest.
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The father of Tennessee Titans’ cornerback Caleb Farley was killed when a house exploded in North Carolina overnight. One other person was hospitalized.
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At least 35 people were killed and more than 100 injured in an explosion at a gas station in the far southwestern Russian republic of Dagestan, Russian officials said.
Among the dead are three children, according to Dagestan’s governor, Sergei Melikov.
Footage distributed by emergency services shows firefighters battling enormous blazes at the gas station, next to burned out vehicles.
Firefighters continue to work at site after an explosion at a gas station in Makhachkala, Dagestan, Russia on August 15, 2023
Anadolu Agency/Getty
The explosion in the city of Makhachkala happened after a fire broke out, the regional branch of the Investigative Committee, which probes major incidents, announced on social media.
“A fire occurred during car maintenance work, followed by a bang, as a result of which people were injured and died,” the committee said, adding that nearby buildings and cars were damaged.
State-run news agencies TASS and Ria Novosti reported that the fire had been extinguished, citing the emergencies ministry.
A criminal case has been opened to establish the circumstances leading to the fire, it added.
Families of the victims will receive 1 million rubles (about $10,000) each, Dagestan authorities said, and those injured – 200,000-400,000 rubles (about $2,000-$4,000).
Tuesday has been declared a day of mourning in Dagestan.
The Kremlin issued a statement saying, “President Putin expresses his most sincere condolences to the families and friends of the victims of the tragedy in Dagestan and wishes a speedy recovery to the victims.”
Makhachkala, a city of over 600,000 on the Caspian Sea, is the capital of Dagestan, which borders Chechnya.
Across Russia, in western Siberia, another blast killed two people and wounded five more on Monday night. That explosion occurred at an oil mine in the Khanty-Mansiysk region late in the evening, local authorities said.
PLUM, Pa. (AP) — Four people were dead and a fifth was unaccounted for following a house explosion in western Pennsylvania that destroyed three structures and damaged at least a dozen others Saturday morning, authorities said.
Allegheny County officials said three people were taken to hospitals after the blast shortly before 10:30 a.m. in the borough of Plum, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Pittsburgh.
Three people were transported to area hospitals, including one who was listed in critical condition and two who were treated and released. More than 20 firefighters were evaluated, many for heat exhaustion, authorities said.
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office was expected to provide additional information about the deceased victims.
Emergency officials suspended operations Saturday night due to weather and concern for the safety of investigators. Crews were expected to resume working at the site on Sunday morning.
Emergency responders reported people trapped under debris after one house apparently exploded and two others were engulfed in flames, county spokesperson Amie Downs said.
PLUM EXPLOSION | Ring door bell footage was given to us of the devastating Rustic Ridge Dr. explosion this morning in Plum. Folks on this block tell me the heavy damage is their last concern, they’re only worried about their neighbors impacted. 1/2 @WTAEpic.twitter.com/QXdcjUkWsQ
Crews from at least 18 fire departments worked to douse the flames with the help of water tankers from Allegheny and Westmoreland counties, Downs said.
Officials told reporters at the scene they did not know exactly who was at home and who may have had visitors at the time of the explosion, so they could not provide an exact number of people considered missing.
The cause of the explosion is under investigation by Plum and county law enforcement and the county fire marshal’s office. The state public utilities commission and local utilities also were at the scene.
George Emanuele, who lives three houses down from the home that exploded, told the Tribune-Review that he and a neighbor went to the home before the fire got out of control, where they found a man laying in the backyard and dragged him away from the scene.
Rafal Kolankowski, who lives a few houses away, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the explosion broke the windows in his house and knocked him and his wife to the ground.
After recovering and checking on his son, Kolankowski went outside and a woman told him another woman had been upstairs and a man was in the basement. The other woman later emerged covered in white ash, but the individual in the basement had not yet exited, he said.
“It’s just tragic, I mean, it looks like a war zone — it looks like a bomb hit our neighborhood and it’s just unfortunate,” Kolankowski said. “I was just with some of the neighbors yesterday, right, and now this happens.”
Jeremy Rogers, who lives two doors down, told the paper he had been out shopping when he got an alert about a problem at his house and saw “all sorts of stuff flying around.” His family was able to get out safely and he was allowed to go inside quickly to rescue his dog, although he could not locate the family’s three cats.
Multiple houses have been “leveled,” one person has died, and several more are missing after an explosion Saturday in Plum, a suburb of Pittsburgh.
One person was confirmed deceased, the Plum Police Department said in a news release. Several others remain unaccounted for, and crews are continuing search operations, police said.
Three people have been transported to local hospitals and “three others are currently unaccounted for,” Allegheny County officials posted on social media.
UPDATE- at least two homes are completely gone. Other homes are damaged. Two triage areas at least are set up. Over 30 units on scene. No reports of any kind of fatalities as of yet. Neighbors rushing to provide seating, water and shade for first responders. @KDKApic.twitter.com/elZldg8qmh
At 10:23 a.m. Eastern time Saturday, 911 dispatchers received a call that multiple houses were on fire due to an explosion. Responding officers and firefighters arrived to find “people trapped under the debris,” Allegheny County officials reported.
Three houses have been destroyed and at least a dozen more are damaged, officials said. CBS Pittsburgh reported that nearby residents were allowed back into their homes.
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
Multiple houses have been “leveled” and others are on fire after an explosion on Saturday in Plum, Pennsylvania, authorities said.
Three people have been transported to local hospitals and “three others are currently unaccounted for,” said Allegheny County on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
UPDATE- at least two homes are completely gone. Other homes are damaged. Two triage areas at least are set up. Over 30 units on scene. No reports of any kind of fatalities as of yet. Neighbors rushing to provide seating, water and shade for first responders. @KDKApic.twitter.com/elZldg8qmh
At 10:23 a.m. local time, 911 received a call that multiple houses were on fire due to an explosion. Police and fire department responded and said “there were people trapped under the debris,” said Allegheny County.
Three houses have been destroyed and at least a dozen more are damaged, officials said. CBS Pittsburgh reported that residents are allowed back into their homes.
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
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