9 Injured In Denver Natural Gas Explosion: Building Destroyed

DENVER, CO – Nine people were injured and one was seriously wounded Tuesday in Denver when multiple explosions destroyed a multi-unit building on Santa Fe Drive. Emergency workers closed Santa Fe from Ellsworth to 5th Avenue. In the evening, Denver Fire workers brought sniffer dogs to search for people in the rubble. Initially, authorities reported 10 people had been injured.

Mayor Michael Hancock visited the scene of the explosion.

"My prayers are with all those who were injured or impacted in today's natural gas explosion near 4th and Santa Fe," Hancock tweeted, thanking the fire department and the hospitals where injured residents were taken.

Around 1 p.m., at least two explosions, thought to be caused by natural gas, rocked the neighborhood. Half of a four-plex building was completely destroyed between 3rd and 4th Avenue.

The explosion threw bricks and debris into the street in front and back of the building and injured people inside and outside. The explosions damaged several cars and a building across the street, Denver Fire spokespeople said. A family's missing cat was found in the rubble.

“It shook the walls over there and everything. It was bad,” witness Brandon Stoddard told CBS News.

Xcel energy employees were on the scene to turn off the gas in the neighborhood.

Image via Denver Fire Dept.

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