One dead, three injured in house explosion in Brooke Co.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Brooke County Sheriff Chuck Jackson said one person is dead after an early morning house explosion in West Virginia’s Northern Panhandle.

Update: Friday, October 11, 2013 at 1:50 p.m.

Brooke County Emergency Management Director Bob Folwer said 911 dispatch received a call about the smell of natural gas from a neighboring home and the fire department responded to a house that wasn’t the one that exploded. He said the fire truck was leaving the scene when the explosion happened.

“It was a pretty extensive explosion. I live in West Liberty, which is probably–in air miles–10 or 12 miles away. Actually, the explosion was loud enough I could hear it in  West Liberty,” said Folwer.  “All of the homes in the area have extensive damage. Some of them have structural damage and, in a lot of homes, the windows were blown out. One of the fire stations is only a short distance from there and there was some damage to that fire station.”

Deputy Emergency Management Director Marlene Whitco said at least 20 homes in the area were impacted by the blast.

The West Virginia State Fire Marshal and the Brooke County Sheriff’s Department are conducting a joint investigation of the incident.

Update: Friday, October 11, 2013 at 11:50 a.m.

Jackson told WTOV that three others have been injured.
 
No names were immediately released.

Original story posted Friday, October 11, 2013 at 9:40 a.m.

It happened Friday morning in Follansbee’s Hooverson Heights neighborhood.

Whitco said she’s unsure about the nature of the explosion, but she says residents are not being evacuated.

Authorities had no further details.