At least 10 people were injured Wednesday morning, nine of them seriously, in an explosion at an office building in downtown Baltimore that collapsed part of the roof, authorities said.
Firefighters and ambulances responded to the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company building on Center Street after the explosion, which was reported sometime after 8 a.m. The injured were taken to hospitals, the Baltimore City fire department said.
Nine people were in critical condition and one was in serious condition, the department said. Mayor Brandon M. Scott of Baltimore said on Twitter that 21 people were saved. Two people were brought to safety from a window washing platform that dangled dangerously after the explosion, authorities said.
“Right now we need people to pray for the people who were in this building and pray that they will all have a speedy and full recovery,” said Mr. Scott on the spot to reporters.
It was not immediately clear what caused the explosion, which took place on the 16th floor of the 21-story building, a The Baltimore Fire Department said. The Baltimore field office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said on Twitter that his special agents were on the scene to assist city police and firefighters.
In a statement, BGE said it was “a construction-related incident.” Construction work was underway on the building’s air handling and boiler system, “which likely triggered the incident,” the company said. The company later added on Wednesday morning that the building’s gas service had been shut down due to the works.
“The building was mostly empty due to the upcoming holidays and the pandemic,” said BGE.
Two workers were rescued after being trapped on a window cleaning platform, the fire department said. Video from a local TV channel showed the platform dangling at an angle when firefighters broke windows to reach the workers.
An employee was pulled through a 10th floor window. A firefighter climbed the platform and pulled the second employee through an 11th-floor window, Baltimore City Fire Department chief Niles R. Ford told reporters at the scene. He said those workers were “in pretty good shape.”
“The building has been affected from the 10th floor to the roof and there were several contractors working in the building,” he said.
City officials closed streets in the area and urged drivers to take alternative routes.