Explosion rips through home in East Flatbush

August 30, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

Share this:

EAST FLATBUSH — A NATURAL GAS LEAK CAUSED THE EXPLOSION THAT RIPPED THROUGH A HOME IN EAST FLATBUSH Thursday night, a fire marshal for the FDNY has ruled, according to an update released on Friday afternoon. The explosion seriously injured four people. As of 10 p.m. Aug. 29, all three of the injured had been transferred to a hospital in the area and fire crews are ending operations at the scene, according to Citizen. The explosion was believed to have originated in the basement, and questions have been raised whether it was being used as an illegal dwelling, ABC-7 News reported, and caused extensive damage to the rear and placed the building’s structural integrity in question.

Questions have also arisen as to whether the basement was being used illegally as a separate dwelling. Residents of the two adjacent buildings on either side of the damaged buildings were evacuated. Gas was turned off throughout the entire block. and the FDNY is coordinating with the NYPD, medical services, National Grid, Con Edison and the Department of Buildings on determining the cause. Some neighbors reported smelling gas immediately after the explosion, reports CBS News.

One user commented on Citizen that the explosion could be “heard from Farragut,” four to five blocks to the East, with other users echoing this claim. FDNY Assistant Chief Tom Currao told PIX11 News that it was “quite a powerful explosion. Ripped right through the dwelling, as well as caused significant damage to the rear of the dwelling.”

✰✰✰