SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES
5 injured in Portland after building explosion
Oct 19, 2016, 11:30 AM
At least five people were injured in a massive explosion in Portland Wednesday morning. (Portland Fire)
(Portland Fire)
Three firefighters and two civilians were injured in a reported explosion in northwest Portland.
According to KOIN News, the gas incident happened on Wednesday near NW 23rd Avenue and Glisan Street around 9 a.m.
Utility company NW Natural said that a third-party caused damage to a gas line, but the ignition cause is unknown.
The COO of Dosha Salon Spa Kimberly Johnson tells KOIN 6 News that the salon was evacuated before the explosion happened. She said all of her employees were safe.
Two explosions were then heard, sending plumes of smoke over northwest Portland. Witnesses tell KOIN News they heard a loud explosion and buildings in the area shook.
5 injured in #Portland after reported building explosion https://t.co/Qmgb5mMmrd pic.twitter.com/loeGzXCfVB
— KIRO 7 (@KIRO7Seattle) October 19, 2016
Portland Fire & Rescue responded to the scene as a four-alarm gas fire incident.
The explosion appears to have been at Portland Bagelworks. The owner of the shop told KATU News all his employees are accounted for; next door to the bagel shop, a building had its windows blown out.
Explosion at scene of natural gas leak at NE 23rd & Glisan. Multiple firefighter injuries. Avoid area. pic.twitter.com/X8lNS7bNWE
— Portland Fire&Rescue (@PDXFire) October 19, 2016
Earlier this year, a massive explosion leveled a building, destroyed businesses and injured nine firefighters in Seattle’s Greenwood neighborhood.
The Utilities and Transportation Commission says the cause of the Greenwood explosion that devastated part of the business core in March was a damaged gas line that was listed as abandoned in Puget Sound Energy records but remained connected for years.
According to UTC, the broken gas service line was one that PSE records showed as abandoned in 2004. At the time, PSE failed to properly disconnect and seal the line, allowing it to remain in service for nearly 12 years without proper oversight, a news release said.
The investigation found the immediate cause of the explosion was possibly a homeless person who accessed a space near the pipe without proper authorization. That person “applied force” to the gas line.
