1 killed in Texas hospital explosion
UPDATE: 6/26/2018 5:10 p.m. The state fire marshal will lead the investigation into what caused an explosion at a Central Texas hospital that killed a construction worker and injured 12 others.
Coryell County Judge John Firth, the county’s top elected official, says the fire marshal was either en route or already at the scene of the blast.
The explosion happened about 2:30 p.m. Monday at the Coryell Memorial Healthcare System hospital in Gatesville.
Bob Harrell, the county’s emergency management coordinator, says some of those injured received severe burns and were taken to the Parkland Memorial Hospital’s burn unit in Dallas, about 110 miles (177 kilometers) to the northeast of Gatesville.
Harrell says that all workers are believed to be accounted for, but that a search dog will be brought in to examine the wreckage of the wing that was being built to the hospital.
UPDATE: 6/26/2018 4:11 p.m. One person has died following an explosion at a Texas hospital construction site.
Bob Harrell, emergency manager for Coryell County, says that a dozen people were injured by the blast.
The explosion happened at the Coryell Memorial Healthcare System hospital in Gatesville.
Harrell was speaking at a news conference.
PREVIOUS STORY: 6/26/2018 4:01 p.m. Four people have been injured, including one critically, from an explosion at a Central Texas hospital construction project.
Carly Latham, spokeswoman for the 25-bed Coryell Memorial Healthcare System in Gatesville, Texas, confirmed the injuries in the blast.
The incident was reported about 2:30 p.m. Tuesday at a construction site at the hospital in Gatesville, 36 miles (58 kilometers) west of Waco, Texas.
Witnesses say a generator exploded in an addition to the hospital that was under construction.
A spokesman for the Texas-New Mexico Power Company says the explosion knocked out power for a large portion of the city.
Patients were being evacuated from the hospital and from two nearby nursing homes. Gatesville has a population of about 12,400 people.
PREVIOUS STORY:
Emergency crews are converging on a Central Texas hospital where a large explosion has been reported.
The incident was reported about 2:30 p.m. Tuesday at a construction site at the Coryell Memorial Healthcare System hospital in Gatesville, 36 miles (58 kilometers) west of Waco, Texas.
Hospital spokeswoman Carly Latham told KWTX-TV of Waco that there were injuries, but she didn’t have any totals or information on severity. She said she hadn’t heard of any deaths.
Witnesses say the explosion happened when a generator exploded in an addition to the hospital that was under construction.
A spokesman for the Texas-New Mexico Power Company says the explosion knocked out power for a large portion of the city.
Patients were being evacuated from the hospital and from two nearby nursing homes.
