Gaithersburg condo building explosion sends 12 to hospital; 2 in critical condition

An explosion and fire tore through a Gaithersburg, Maryland, condo building Wednesday morning, sending 12 people to the hospital. Two of the victims had critical injuries.

Montgomery County Fire Chief Scott Goldstein said during a press conference that four children were among those injured. The two people with grave injuries are adults.

The explosion happened around 8:40 a.m. at the Potomac Oaks Condominium near the 800 block of Quince Orchard Boulevard. 

It took responding firefighters about 40 minutes to contain the two-alarm fire, at which point search and rescue operations began.

Mr. Goldstein told reporters he was unsure how many people were unaccounted for.

The cause of the blast was under investigation. 

The fire chief mentioned that some residents said they smelled gas prior to the explosion. Mr. Goldstein also said crews found an active gas-fed fire in the building’s basement more than an hour after the explosion.