At Least One Dead, Eight Injured after Large Gas Explosion Rips through Illinois Town
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – At least one person died and as many as eight were injured when a massive gas explosion rattled a small town in Illinois Wednesday afternoon, authorities said.
The blast ripped through downtown Canton around 5:45 p.m. local time, according to Fulton County Emergency Management. The cause of the explosion was not immediately known, and authorities could not confirm the extent of people's injuries.
Police set up a three block perimeter around the explosion site and urged local residents to stay away from the area as emergency responders arrived on the scene.
Photos posted to social media show the town's main square scattered with debris and blown out windows. Several large buildings were impacted by the blast, according to officials, the New York Daily News reported.
Karen Calhoun who was just a block from where the explosion is believed to have taken place, said, "The sound was deafening, and I actually fell over from the shake. I have never experienced anything like it in my life.
"I saw windows in neighboring buildings blown out with the glass in the streets and sidewalks," she said. "I went and saw bricks and all kinds of building materials spread all over the square."
Canton has roughly 15,000 residents and is located some 30 miles southwest of Peoria.
