Explosion destroys home in Mississauga, Ontario; 1 person dead, several people injured and houses damaged

One person is dead after a devastating explosion levelled a house in Mississauga, Ont., and damaged 24 others.

Peel Regional police, firefighters and paramedics responded to the call of a house explosion at 4:20 p.m. on Hickory Drive near Willowbank Trail, in the Dixie Road and Rathburn Road East area. The cause of the blast, which also left nine people with minor injuries, is still unknown. A fire official said it is too early to speculate on what led to the explosion.

Tim Beckett, fire chief for the City of Mississauga, said the damage to neighbouring houses ranged from very light to extreme and there had been several injuries reported. He said Tuesday night that the evacuation area covered 25 to 30 homes, and a total of 50 to 100 people have been forced to leave their homes.

Beckett said there is also limited access to about 700 addresses in what he called the “outer perimeter” of the evacuated zone. That means people who were in their homes during the explosion can “shelter in place” or make arrangements to leave, and those who were not at home are not allowed to return for now.

A spokeswoman for the City of Mississauga said first responders continued to investigate the area Tuesday night, adding that 25 homes had been damaged in the blast. Utilities in the area had also been shut off as a precaution for emergency crews and residents.

According to the police,they totally lost one home and have yet to begin their investigation into the cause, with the focus on stabilizing the site.

One of the residence who was walking his dog 50 feet away from the house before it exploded and acknowledged himself as Paolo, told correspondents that he saw the house in the air when he turned around right after hearing the explosion and bumping her mother down as she was standing in his home’s backyard but she was uninjured.

“It was like somebody punched me in the face,” another woman said of the moment the blast shook her home near to the scene.

A woman who said she lived two doors down from the house that has been levelled said her house shook after the blast.

“It was just horrible; you couldn’t see anything.”

Mayor Bonnie Crombie said family reunification is a priority at this point and gas, power and transportation have been cut off to about 100 homes in the area, urges displaced residents to head to Burnhamthorpe Community Centre. Peel police said there is no estimated time of return for residents that have been displaced.

Beckett said there were 50 firefighter staff at the site of the explosion, while paramedics had six units with 12 to 15 people on scene and there were an unknown number of police investigating.

Nearby Burnhamthorpe Community Centre at 1500 Gulleden Dr. was set up as a temporary shelter for evacuated residents. The Red Cross and the Insurance Bureau of Canada are in position. Arrangements to retrieve pets and medications can also be made at the community centre.