Cypress Hills

Basement Explosion Shakes Brooklyn Block, Leaving 6 Hurt and Dozens Displaced

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What to Know

  • Six people were injured early Wednesday morning after an explosion at a Brooklyn building shook an entire block and led to a fire that quickly spread to nearby structures.
  • Two people were on the upper floor when they felt an explosion in the basement, according to the FDNY.
  • It's unclear what sparked the explosion but Con Edison has responded to the scene to mitigate possible gas emergency, fire officials said.

Six people were injured early Wednesday morning after an explosion at a Brooklyn building shook an entire block and led to a fire that quickly spread to nearby structures.

Two people were on the upper floor when they felt an explosion in the basement, according to the FDNY. Firefighters then received a call and they responded to the scene on Vermont Street in the Cypress Hills section just after midnight. They found flames engulfing the attached 3-story residences as well as another separate fire building that building.

The pair who felt the explosion were able to evacuate their apartment and suffered injuries that were not life-threatening, authorities said. As the blaze continued to grow, four other people were hurt. The extent of their injuries is unclear but the FDNY said only two of six were victims were taken to the hospital.

It's unclear what sparked the explosion but Con Edison has responded to the scene to mitigate possible gas emergency, fire officials said.

At least 54 people have been displaced from their homes due to the incident and Department of Building officials will now have to investigate whether the structural stability of the entire block was compromised.

Fighting back tears, resident Edwin Rodriguez explained the harrowing ordeal, as he grabbed his children and ran to safety. He said he smelled gas 12 hours before the explosion and called the landlord.

"I smelled it. Something wasn't right," he said. "I'm walking up the stairs, it's getting stronger."

Hours later, Rodriguez said he called the landlord again after dropping off his children from school and says that the landlord supposedly fixed the issue.

A house in Brooklyn exploded on Wednesday morning, shocking neighborhoods as they scrambled to get away from the fire. NBC New York's Tracie Strahan reports.

Another one the displaced residents said her whole house was shaken by the explosion.

"Everything just got destroyed. When I saw that happened, I just ran out and made sure everyone got out of the house," Michelle Grullo said. "I was in a room with my brothers. The three of us we just came out, made sure everybody got out of the house."

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