North Hills Family Escapes Explosion, Fire In Home
HAMPTON TOWNSHIP (KDKA) -- A family escaped their North Hills home after an explosion sparked a fire Sunday night.
According to officials at the scene, it happened on Sample Court in Hampton Township around 9:30 p.m.
Family members said they were upstairs when they heard an explosion in the basement. When they went downstairs, they reportedly found their garage door blown to pieces and the basement on fire.
"We felt the house shake and heard this big bang," Ashley Bridge said. "My dad opened the basement door and everything in our pantry was blown on the floor. He ran down the steps and said he saw fire in front of the dryer."
The family of two adults and two kids ran to a relative's house next door to call 911.
Neighbors reportedly also felt the explosion.
"We heard over the air there were explosions, but we didn't know what was the source of the explosions obviously, until we got there. We found a couple fuel cans, for lawn mowers and so forth, stored in the garage," Hampton Township Volunteer Fire Department Chief Dan Kuny said.
The family returned home just 20 minutes before the explosion. They are thankful that no one was injured, but it was certainly a close call.
"My mom had taken her bike and put it in the garage and from what it looked like, that's where the explosion came from was the garage. So, luckily it didn't happen when she was in there, or when we were walking through when we were coming home," Bridge said.
It's unclear what came first, the explosion or the fire. That's still under investigation by the Allegheny County fire marshal.
This is a developing story, stay with KDKA and KDKA.com for more information.
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