PLANTATION, Fla. _ An explosion at a Plantation shopping center injured about 20 people around 11:30 a.m. local time Saturday, in a loud blast that could be felt for miles around. No deaths have been reported.
But the cause remains unknown.
"We cannot confirm that a gas leak caused this explosion," Plantation Fire Rescue Deputy Chief Joel Gordon said. "We suspect it was but we cannot confirm that yet."
Two people were taken to Broward Health Medical Center in serious condition, while the others had non-life-threatening injuries, Gordon said.
Police Sgt. Jessica Ryan said no one was found trapped in the rubble at Fountains Plaza.
Fire Rescue initially had trouble getting close to the scene because of debris blocking the access roads to the two adjacent shopping centers, Fountains Plaza and the Plantation Marketplace, he told reporters. A ruptured gas line was found the rubble, Gordon said.
The Broward Sheriff's Office bomb and arson unit joined state fire marshals at the scene. Representatives of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and a TECO Energy crew, joined the investigation.
Witnesses said a vacant pizza restaurant appeared to be the source of the explosion.
Police say all stores and businesses in the area are closed until fire officials determine it is safe to return. Police asked people to avoid the area if possible.
Some onlookers meandered throughout the plaza as firefighters and police picked through a large debris field.
Just before the blast, Evan Hoffman, 47, of Davie, was working out with his wife, Stacey, at LA Fitness.
"A huge, huge bang, thump, almost, explosion," he said. "It started shaking back and forth and the roof tiles started crashing down and the power went out."
"We saw Good Samaritans carrying the injured," Hoffman said. Some people had tourniquets on their leg, he said.
Michael von Friedrich, 48, of Davie, said he was in a Zumba class on the second floor during the explosion. The music was loud, but the group of approximately 30 all stopped and looked at each other.
"We all heard it and knew something didn't sound right," he said after the building was evacuated.
Sharif Mohamed, another LA Fitness evacuee, said he left his car behind _ the BMW's front and back windshields were shattered, the hood was dented, and glass and debris were littered inside.
"The pizza building looked like ground zero," he said.
Carrie Reuter stood behind crime scene tape at the nearby Fountains Plaza, where her business, Motion Stretch, was supposed to open next week.
She said all four of her security cameras had blank images and she feared the extent of the damage.
"We'll see. An entire staff of people were getting ready to open," Reuter said. "They won't have jobs."
Erez Yacob, a stylist at the M. Evans Salon, said he was blow drying a client's hair when the explosion rattled the store.
"We heard a strong boom, and one second after, everything exploded in the shop and out in the street," he said, adding that the salon's glass windows blew out and all the shelves inside fell to the floor.
"It's crazy," Yacob said. "We thought it was a car or a bombing because everything (the building across the street) disappeared."
Lynn Kline, the salon's owner, said customers rushed to their cars, some with half-haircuts and foil in their hair still.
"We didn't know if there was going to be another explosion so we immediately grabbed customers and went out the back emergency door," she said. "We are so lucky no one was hurt."
While fire alarms sounded across the shopping center, the explosion was heard and felt for miles around.
Niko Davis, 12, was at home with his mom about three miles away when they heard a "boom" and heard the windows on their house shake.
"It was a loud explosion and you couldn't tell where it was coming from," Davis said.
