AMN / NEWS DESK
At least two people are feared dead as a massive fire and explosion tore through a nursing home on the outskirts of Philadelphia on Tuesday, prompting local responders, bystanders and staff to rush the elderly residents to safety, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said.
Bristol Police Chief Charles Winik said that one of those killed was an employee and the other was a resident. Twenty people were initially hospitalized, but one has since been released. One person is in critical condition. No first responders were injured, he said.
Authorities had previously said some people were missing, but Winik confirmed all nursing home residents and employees have been accounted for.
Officials’ preliminary belief is that a gas leak caused the explosion, Shapiro said at a news conference Tuesday evening.
The Probe is being led by the National Transportation Safety Board, according to a statement Wednesday from PECO, the local utility company, which said, “It is not known at this time if PECO’s equipment, or natural gas, was involved in this incident.”
Bristol Health & Rehab Center, formerly known as the Silver Lake Nursing Home, said in a Facebook post local authorities were responding to the facility and they would post updates when warranted. It is located about 20 miles northwest of Philadelphia in Bristol Township.