Shop Owner Killed in North Carolina Explosion

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — A leaking gas line exploded Wednesday in a Durham shopping district, killing one person and injuring more than a dozen others as firefighters were evacuating people from buildings near the rupture, authorities said. The blast reverberated across the North Carolina city — turning one building to rubble, shattering windows blocks away and filling the air with acrid smoke. The owner of a coffee shop at the site of the blast was identified Wednesday night as the person who died. Jim Rogalski, 58, was working in his office across the street from the destroyed building when the explosion blew out the windows. At least four people working in cubicles by the windows suffered deep cuts, bloody head wounds and other injuries, he said. "There was lots of screaming. ..." Rogalski said. "It was pretty frantic there for a little bit until help showed up." Rogalski was seated one row away from the windows and wasn't hurt. "It was terrifying," he said. "The whole building shook. Things started falling — ceiling tiles, and structure and glass and debris. Lots and lots of dust. It was tough to see beyond 20 feet or so." Firefighters and emergency personnel work the scene of a building fire in downtown Durham, N.C., Wednesday, April 10, 2019. Authorities say emergency officials responded to an explosion and fire possibly caused by a gas leak. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome) The explosion came about 15 minutes after the office's human re...
Source: JEMS: Journal of Emergency Medical Services News - Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: Major Incidents News Source Type: news