Pennsylvania nursing home damaged by explosion
An explosion at Silver Lake Healthcare Center in Bristol, Pennsylvania, left the building in ruins and killed at least two people.
BUCKS COUNTY, Pa. — A “catastrophic” explosion at a suburban Philadelphia nursing home on Tuesday killed at least two people, injured 20 and left the facility partially destroyed, officials and officials said.
At least two people were killed in the explosion at the Bristol Health and Rehabilitation Center in Bristol Township, a Philadelphia suburb, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said at a news conference. Police reported a third death late Tuesday, but later confirmed the victim was alive.
Bristol County Police Chief Charles Winnik said 20 people were injured. Those who were reported missing earlier in the day have been found and are alive, he added.
“The search is over now that everyone has been searched,” he said around 10 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
The explosion occurred around 2:19 p.m. ET, Bristol County Fire Marshal Kevin Dippolito said. Bucks County 911 received a report of an explosion at a nursing home with multiple injuries, the Bucks County Courier-Times, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported.
The identity of the victim was not immediately known.
Part of the facility, also known as Silver Lake Healthcare Center, collapsed, according to the county. Video from the scene showed flames shooting from the building shortly after the explosion.
The explosion occurred while crews from local energy company PECO were at the scene to check on a strong odor of gas that was reported just after 2 p.m., the power company said. PECO crews cut off natural gas and electricity to the facility after the explosion.
Shapiro said an investigation into the cause of the explosion is underway. The state Public Utilities Commission was working with PECO on the ground, the governor said.
“We tentatively believe that a gas leak was the cause,” Shapiro said at a news conference. “The explosion was truly devastating.”
Dippolito said authorities continued rescue efforts into the evening and had not yet moved into recovery efforts.
Dippolito said reports of an explosion at the nursing home “blared on the radio” after the incident.
Bristol Township Fire and Rescue Department immediately responded to the scene and determined that a large structural collapse had occurred, with multiple persons trapped. Dippolito said fire officials went into “rescue mode.”
“They pulled many residents out of the building through windows and doors and became trapped in stairwells and elevator shafts,” the fire chief said. “The people who were outside the building were already injured, and the people who were removed by the fire department were handed over to police officers… They were literally carrying patients while we were handing them over.”
Two people were rescued from the collapsed building in the basement, Dippolito said. Dippolito said crews also felt a “strong odor of gas” at the time and evacuated people from the building before a second explosion occurred about 30 seconds later.
“There was another explosion and fire,” the fire chief said. “Thanks to the fire, we were able to pinpoint where the leak was coming from in the basement and were able to prevent it from spreading to other parts of the building.”
They rescued as many people as possible, he said. Outside, first responders shouted to nearby onlookers, “Stand back! Stand back!”
Both Shapiro and Dippolito praised the emergency response to the explosion.
Officials said firefighters climbed ladders to rescue people from the facility and handed them over to police. Dippolito said one officer carried them on his shoulders.
“Right after the explosion, I saw what true heroism is,” Shapiro said. “Firefighters rushed to the scene to contain the explosion, extinguish the fire and, most importantly, rescue people.”
Bristol Township officials declared a local state of emergency Tuesday following the explosion and collapsed building.
Dippolito said the declaration will allow authorities to bring in additional resources, such as specialized equipment to help stabilize buildings and search for debris. He added that workers are currently deploying heavy equipment to the site to move heavy debris.
This township is located in Lower Bucks County, a few miles from Philadelphia and near the New Jersey border. This nursing home is located near Lower Bucks Hospital.
While authorities are still investigating the cause of the explosion, an employee at the nursing home told the Bucks County Courier-Times that she smelled a strong odor of gas in the facility’s activity room just before an explosion from the basement blew out the ceiling around her and the residents.
PECO crews responded to a report of a gas odor at the nursing home just before 2 p.m. ET, the utility said in a statement. The explosion occurred while crews were on scene.
“PECO crews shut off natural gas and electricity to the facility to ensure the safety of first responders and local residents,” the utility said. “It is unclear at this time whether PECO equipment or natural gas was involved in this incident.”
Nearby residents said they heard and felt their homes shake after the explosion.
Joe Westergon, who was home when he heard the explosion several blocks away, told the Courier-Journal that he helped carry six injured residents to safety.
“I would take them to the curb and sit them down,” Westergon said. “I tried to keep them as calm as possible… They’ll live, but they were pretty torn up and some were bleeding.”
Nurses from neighboring Lower Bucks Hospital were at the scene, providing blankets and assistance to evacuated residents.
According to Medicare.gov, Silver Lake is a for-profit nursing home with approximately 174 licensed beds. The federal agency gives it an overall rating of “below average,” based on health inspections, staffing and quality standards.
According to Medicare.gov, the most recent fire safety inspection was conducted in September 2024 and did not yield a rating for fire safety and emergency preparedness.
The facility moved under new ownership in early December, Shapiro said at a news conference. According to the governor, the state Department of Health conducted an inspection of the facility on December 10th.
“There was a plan in place for these new facility owners to upgrade the standards of this facility,” Shapiro said. “It is clear that work will continue with the new owners to ensure that we do what is necessary to keep the residents of this and other facilities safe.”
The facility’s owner, Saber Healthcare Group, said it is working with local emergency officials and “continues to prioritize the health of our residents, staff and their families.”
Contributors: Chris Ullery, JD Mullane, Jess Rohan, Michele Haddon, Bucks County delivery times
