NORTHFIELD TWP., Mich. – Northfield Township Police said a fourth person has died, two others remain hospitalized in critical condition after a home explosion Saturday afternoon.
It happened in the 8000 block of Winters Lane around 3:50 p.m., according to police. The victims have not been identified.
“You have three deceased on scene, it’s terrible,” Northfield Township police Lt. David Powell told Local 4 on the scene. “Our officers got a call just a little while ago that somebody found debris on the other side of 23 (US 23) with some paperwork on it, so we went over and collected that to see if it was from that and it is debris from the house explosion.”
There was a total of six people in the house.
Officials said the house was destroyed and only the basement remains. The cause of the explosion is not yet known, but an official on the scene said it could have been a gas leak.
A neighbor on the scene talked to Local 4′s Jacqueline Francis. “It went off like a bomb. I don’t know how to explain it,” the neighbor said. “It was the scariest thing I’ve ever seen.”
“I live about 100 yards from him and by the time I drove there, there was still stuff falling from the sky,” he said.
No other homes in the area were damaged but neighbors reported feeling the ground shake, and debris was found scattered throughout the area.
Video below shows smoke and debris in the air after the explosion, taken nearby by Nate Mark.