A row of homes collapsed in Philadelphia Monday morning following a possible gas leak, leaving at least 8 people injured including a baby, CBS station KYW reports.
According to the report, a contractor was working inside a home which was being renovations when the explosion occurred, said Philadelphia Police Deputy Robert Coyne. That man was critically injured after suffering severe burns to his shoulder and arms. He was taken to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania for treatment.
The baby, who was injured by flying glass, was reportedly thrown out of a window into the arms of a firefighter following the 11am explosion in the 400 block of Daly Street in the south of the city.
Bricks littered the small south Philadelphia street and nearly cover a car parked out front. The houses on either side of the destroyed home are badly damaged, with huge sections of masonry walls missing.
The other victims sustained non-life threatening injuries, according to the reports. It is not immediately known
It is not known where the injured adults lived, but the baby - who was hurt by flying glass - and the 15-year-old live in nearby houses, rather than the one that exploded.
The cause of the gas leak is still unknown and gas and electrical utility crews are investigating clues as to what may have sparked the leak. Philadelphia Gas Works has also been called to investigate the matter.
Eye witness Laura McColgan told NBC Philadelphia that she was at home around the corner when she heard 'a very loud noise'.
'I went outside and saw everyone running around the corner,' she said. 'I saw the building down, saw the smoke and smelled the horrible smell of gas as well... I'm still shaking.'
Another neighbor, Carol McKenna, told Fox29: 'I definitely felt my whole house shake.
'The first thing, what I heard was a loud explosion. My house shook, and I didn't know whether to look outside or not look outside.'
