A firefighter has been killed in a gas explosion in Maine at an office building.
The victim was caught up in the blast, at a recently opened nonprofit centre, after crews arrived to investigate the smell of gas Monday morning.
Six other people, including fellow firefighters, were hurt, officials in the US said.
The building had been evacuated after the gas was detected, said Farmington Town Selectman Scott Landry.
The blast injured four other firefighters, including the town's fire chief, one employee of the nonprofit centre and one ambulance worker.
The blast around 8.30am local time was heard for miles and had enough force to blow a vehicle across an intersection.
Paper, insulation and building debris rained on the area.
All that was left of the two-story building housing LEAP Inc., which serves people with cognitive and intellectual disabilities, was a hole, Mr Landry said.
"It's a war zone. It's just a mess," said Mr Landry, who is also a state representative. "The building is gone."
Kim Hilton, who works in the admissions department at the nearby University of Maine at Farmington, said there were scary moments when the blast occurred.
"It felt like someone hit our building with a vehicle," she said.
The ambulance worker was treated and released, state public safety spokesman Steve McCausland said.
The other five were taken to regional trauma centres, including the state's largest hospital, Maine Medical Center in Portland, and remained hospitalised on Monday afternoon, officials said.
Their conditions were not released.
Additional reporting by agencies.
