Written by Lily Azat
Staff Writer
A gas explosion on the 1700 block of Huntington Drive hospitalized one woman around 6:30 AM the morning of Tuesday, August 15. The South Pasadena Police Department (SPPD) received several calls of the explosion and a fire. The woman was quickly rushed to the hospital, severely injured with burns on her body.
Fire Department Chief Paul Riddle stated that smoke was initially reported, but after the roof was opened flames immediately shot out of an apartment attic. Immediate responses from the South Pasadena, Alhambra, Pasadena and San Marino Fire Departments quickly contained the fire. SPPD estimated that the fire was extinguished within an hour of their arrival, and that it was contained to only one apartment.
In a statement released by SPPD, “[the woman] really doesn’t know what happened and was woken up with the explosion,” SPPD Corporal Craig Phillips said. “She said she was sleeping at the time of the explosion when it knocked her out of bed.”
Paramedics took her to Huntington Hospital while firefighters continued to pursue the blaze.
The cause of the fire is unknown at this time, with the possibility of “some sort of gas explosion,” according to Phillips.
This article will be continuously updated as the South Pasadena Police Department releases further information.
