A gas leak is being eyed as the cause of a house explosion in Somerset, Massachusetts. The blast, which was reported around 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 19, leveled a home on New York Avenue in Somerset, killing the lone occupant - a woman and her dog. The house explosion victim has been identified Rose Marie Rebello, age 62.
The Somerset house explosion led to the evacuation of nearby residents. WBZ-TV Channel 4 in Boston reports that as many as two dozen homes were damaged when the Somerset house exploded, and in the moments following the blast as first responders had to force entry into a few homes to check on the well-being of the residents.
Neighbors in the Somerset neighborhood told WBZ-TV that they had smelled natural gas shortly before the house exploded. In fact, it's been reported that crews from the New England Gas Company had been dispatched to the New York Avenue area shortly before the blast occurred.
As of Friday morning, residents of homes nearest to the scene of the explosion were still not allowed to return to their homes.
According to Massachusetts State Fire Marshal Steven Coan, the cause and circumstanced surrounding the house explosion remain the subject of an ongoing investigation.
(AP Photo)
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