A DEADLY blast that killed two people and rendered at least 12 homes unlivable has been caught on video.
The horrific explosion shook the neighborhood for miles, turning debris into projectiles that damaged nearby homes and left residents terrified.
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In the shocking video, viewers see the smoldering ruins where a home once stood at the center of the blast, surrounded by damaged cars and other property.
Two people died from their injuries, including the 73-year-old owner of the home and a utility worker who had been working on the property.
Locals living near the explosion in Bel Air of Harford County, Maryland — a town of about 10,000 people located roughly 30 miles northeast of Baltimore — were sleeping before the huge bang and shock wave woke them up on Sunday morning.
They were unaware that a pair of workers from Baltimore Gas and Electric Company was visiting their neighbor to repair an electrical issue.
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Firefighters were already en route to the property on the 2300 block of Arthur Woods Drive when the tragedy occurred, a master deputy with the State Fire Marshal’s Office, Oliver Alkire, told the Associated Press.
The department had received a call with a report of a possible gas leak and a strong smell of gas in the area just minutes before the explosion.
First responders got the service update from dispatch while approaching the house so they knew what to expect when they arrived at the devastating scene at 6:42 am.
TRAGEDY CONFIRMED
Rescue workers quickly located the body of one victim, the utility worker, and pronounced him dead at the scene.
BGE later confirmed in a statement that they had a team working on the property before the blast.
“BGE crews responded at the request of the fire department to assist with the response and investigation. The cause of the incident is under investigation. We can confirm that BGE contractors were on site responding to an electric service matter at the time of the incident. Please direct all questions to the Harford County Fire Department at this time,” they wrote.
The body of the home’s owner, a retiree who relied on his wheelchair for mobility, was found later in the rubble and pronounced dead at the scene.
One neighbor was also treated for minor injuries, and at least a dozen homes were deemed uninhabitable due to the damage caused by the blast.
The complete number of damaged buildings is still being tallied by the Harford County Department of Inspections, Licenses. and Permits, according to a Facebook post shared by Harford County officials.
All the doors blew open, front door blew open, the basement doors blew open, the back door blew open.
Chuck Laubach
Local authorities said the victims’ specific causes of death are still under investigation, pending a report from the coroner’s office.
Residents of the area have been asked to contact their local representative if they smelled gas before the explosion or suffered any losses due to the incident.
‘A MASSIVE EXPLOSION’
Neighbors living around the destroyed epicenter told local reporters that the early morning explosion was terrifying.
“All of a sudden, a massive explosion, a bomb went off. All the doors blew open, front door blew open, the basement doors blew open, the back door blew open,” neighbor Chuck Laubach told local NBC affiliate WBAL-TV.
“The front door actually went above the house next door and landed in our backyard and again everything shattered in the house the backyard, but we’re lucky because the force of the explosion went just to the right of us,” he added.
Laubach, who lives just two houses away from the blast, spoke fondly of the home’s owner.
“I think he grew up in Middle River and lived here. He was the first buyer here in the neighborhood, and when his wife passed away, he decided to sell the house and move back to where he grew up in Middle River and be on the water,” Laubach said.
The cause of the explosion is still under investigation by local authorities and BGE.
