An explosion shook downtown Youngstown, Ohio, on Tuesday, injuring seven people—one critically—and leaving two more unaccounted for.
Authorities warned people to stay away from the area following the explosion, which happened Tuesday afternoon close to Central Square. The origin of the blast remains unknown. The building’s ground level reportedly houses the Chase bank, and the above 12 stories are made up of apartments.
Barry Finley, the fire chief of Youngstown, first described the event as a natural gas explosion but subsequently stated that investigators were attempting to ascertain whether a gas leak had occurred.
Mercy Health said on Tuesday night that it was treating seven victims of the event, one of whom was in critical condition.
A man and a woman are still missing after the building was searched, according to Finley. The fire chief stated that the man works at the bank and that search teams were attempting to deploy a mini-drone into the flooded basement to help with the search after the floor fell into it.
Because there might be a structural collapse, officials have evacuated the building and restricted the nearby streets to traffic indefinitely.
