2 People Dead, Others Still Missing After Pennsylvania Nursing Home Explosion

At least two people were killed and multiple others remained unaccounted for after an explosion rocked a Pennsylvania nursing home on Tuesday.

In a statement from PECO Energy Company obtained by NBC Philadelphia, the utility said crews responded shortly after 2 p.m. to reports of a gas odor at the Bristol Health and Rehab Center—also known as the Silver Lake Nursing Home—located at 905 Tower Road in Bristol Township, Bucks County.

“While crews were on site, an explosion occurred at the facility. PECO crews shut off natural gas and electric service to the facility to ensure the safety of first responders and local residents,” the company said.

During a Tuesday afternoon press conference, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said early findings suggest a gas leak may have triggered the blast.

“We know that at this time there are at least two fatalities. We know that there are some number of individuals still missing,” Shapiro said.

The facility has 174 certified beds and typically houses around 151 residents daily, according to NBC Philadelphia.

Firefighters arriving on scene encountered what Bristol Township Fire Department Chief Kevin Dippolito described as a severe collapse.

“There was a major structural collapse with parts of the first floor into the basement with persons trapped,” Dippolito said.

In response to the incident, Bristol Township Manager Randee J. Mazur issued a local emergency declaration.

Dippolito said rescuers pulled residents from multiple areas throughout the building, including “windows, doors, stuck in stairwells, stuck in elevator shafts.”

He added that responders noticed a strong gas smell during the rescue effort.

“Within approximately 15 to 30 seconds of us exiting the building, knowing there was a heavy odor of of natural gas around us, there was another explosion and fire,” he said. “We kept the fire in check without giving up the source. The fire actually helped us identify where the leak was coming from in the basement and we just prevented it from spreading into other parts of the building.”

Shapiro praised the response from firefighters and other emergency personnel, saying they acted quickly under dangerous conditions.

“They were quite literally climbing up ladders, handing individuals in this nursing home to police who were at times carrying two people on their back to safety,” he said.

According to Dippolito, crews were still working to locate and rescue anyone who may remain trapped.

“We’re still in rescue mode. We have not transitioned into a recovery mode,” he said.

Shapiro also cautioned that it may take time to confirm how many people were injured and to determine the precise cause of the explosion. He noted that new owners took over the facility earlier this month.

He added that the state Department of Health visited the site on Dec. 10 and that “there was a plan put in place in order for these new facility owners to upgrade the standards at this facility.”

“That work will obviously continue with the new owners to ensure that they do what is necessary to residents safe at this facility and at the others where they are being taken to,” Shapiro said.