At least two people were killed in an explosion at Bristol Health and Rehabilitation Center in suburban Philadelphia, including nursing assistant Muthoni Ndutu.
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, Pennsylvania – A day after multiple explosions at a Pennsylvania nursing home killed two people and injured 20 others, authorities began surveying the extensive damage and identifying victims.
Msoni Ndutu, 52, has been named by the Bucks County Coroner’s Office as one of two people found dead inside Silver Lake Nursing Home, also known as Bristol Health & Rehabilitation Center, after two explosions partially collapsed the facility on Tuesday, Dec. 23.
Ndutu, a nursing assistant at the facility and a mother of three, was featured in news stories more than 10 years ago when she purchased her home through the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity. One of Ndutu’s sons, Clinton Ndegwa, declined to comment when contacted by phone, according to the Bucks County Courier Times, part of the USA TODAY Network.
The deadly incident began around 2:20 p.m., with the first explosion trapping dozens of residents inside the two-story building and sparking a frantic search and rescue operation. When firefighters arrived on the scene, they found the building ablaze and pulled frightened residents from windows, stairs and elevator shafts.
After first responders rescued two people from the building’s collapsed basement, a second explosion rocked the facility, starting a new fireball and sending more smoke into the air, Bristol Township Fire Marshal Kevin Dippolito said.
Two people died from their injuries, including Ndutu and a resident who has not yet been publicly identified. At least 20 other people were injured and more than 100 residents have been evacuated. The facility has more than 170 beds, but it is unclear how many residents and staff were in the building at the time of the explosion.
Search teams ceased operations several hours after the explosion, after all residents and employees had been searched. Officials appeared to be still assessing the extent of the damage, as members of various government agencies, including the National Transportation Safety Board, walked around the scene and took photos the next day.
Aftermath of nursing home explosion: An aerial view
This is a drone shot of the aftermath of the explosion at Silver Lake Nursing Home in Bristol on December 23, 2025.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said authorities believe a gas leak caused the “catastrophic” explosion. Crews from local energy company PECO had responded to a report of a gas odor at the nursing home just before the first explosion was reported.
“PECO crews shut off natural gas and electricity to the facility to ensure the safety of first responders and local residents,” the company said in a statement. “It is unclear at this time whether PECO equipment or natural gas was involved in this incident.”
The investigation into the cause of the explosion is still ongoing.
Shapiro and other officials described heroic rescue efforts in which first responders hoisted residents onto their shoulders and carried them out of the burning building.
“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.”
Residents living near the facility said they felt the explosion even when they were inside their homes.
Joe Westergon, who lives a few blocks from the facility, told the Bucks County Courier Times that he helped transport six injured residents to safety.
“I would take them to the curb and sit them down,” Westergon said. “I was trying to keep them as calm as possible… They’ll live, but they were pretty torn up and some were bleeding.”
Contributed by: Thana Nguyen, Aduardo Cuevas, USA TOD. radon..
(This story has been updated to add new information.)
