Traffic camera captures moment house is destroyed in massive explosion after electric crews hit a gas line in Iowa
A traffic camera captured a massive house explosion in Iowa on Monday after a local crew hit a gas line.
Video of the frightening blast was captured by city traffic light positioned near the end of Loras Boulevard in Dubuque.
Footage shows an electric service crew gathering on Loras Boulevard as a fire engine from the Dubuque Fire Department waits nearby. A number of electric crewmen are standing near the home.
Crewman with Price Electric and firefighters with Dubuque Fire Department stood near Loras Boulevard after a gas leak was reported
One crewman grabs a fire extinguisher from the back of a truck, but puts it down and begins walking towards the house.
Seconds later, a house suddenly explodes in a dangerous inferno that sends glass, wood and other debris hurling through the air.
The crewman duck for cover before turning their heads to watch the smoke billow into the neighborhood. A firefighter emerges from his truck to inspect the explosion.
The house suddenly explodes, sending glass, wood and other debris into the air on Monday in Dubuque, Iowa
Chief Rick Steines said Price Electric was in the process of shutting down the gas when it ignited and caused the explosion
KCRG reports that Chief Rick Steines with the Dubuque Fire Department said a machine struck a gas main Monday while working in the area.
He said firefighters evacuated the closest house while they waited for the gas company to arrive.
Steines added the gas company, identified as Price Electric, was in the process of shutting down the gas when it ignited and caused the explosion.
'Price Electric is the contractor who was digging in the area,' Steines told KWWL. 'For some fiber optic conduit -- I believe, and that's more than likely how they struck the main.'
KWWL reports that Price Electric initially flagged the gas leak to authorities.
One firefighter was treated for a cut after the explosion, but no other crewman or neighbors were injured
One house was destroyed and others had windows blown out. A firefighter also was taken to a hospital for a cut, but suffered no serious injuries.
Michaela Cook, who witnessed the incident told KCRG that she felt the explosion from quite a distance.
'Basically I was sitting at my mom’s house minding my own business and then, all of a sudden, I felt the ground shake and I looked outside and I could see the fire, the smoke,' she told the publication.
The City of Dubuque urged owners of rental properties in a Facebook post to check in with tenants in the area.
