A house explosion in Plainfield Township, north of Grand Rapids, killed one person and left a woman in critical condition after neighbors pulled her from the burning wreckage.
Plainfield Township, Mich. — Around 4 a.m. Tuesday, a house explosion turned an early morning into chaos in this area north of Grand Rapids.
Authorities said the blast left one person dead and another woman in critical condition. When first responders arrived, the home was destroyed and debris was still burning, according to the Kent County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators have not yet determined what caused the fire and explosion.
For a neighbor, the moment was sudden and personal. Tim Johnson said he and other neighbors heard yelling and rushed in. “I had to get in there and get her out,” Johnson told WOOD-TV. He said they “grabbed her arms and pulled her out as far as we could.”
Johnson later described the blast’s impact at his own home. He said the explosion shook his house, and he suffered second-degree burns on his head and a hand.
The woman pulled from the home was taken to a hospital, where she remained in critical condition Tuesday.
Until officials can identify what triggered the fire and explosion, the cause remains unclear—leaving questions for the community about what happened in the moments before the house went up and why.
Michigan house explosion Plainfield Township Grand Rapids Kent County Sheriff's Office Tim Johnson second-degree burns fire investigation