A Manhattan building housing a vocational school was rocked by an explosion today, the New York Fire Department said, injuring as many as 50 people, three seriously.
Crews of firefighters and emergency workers rushed to the Apex Technical School in Chelsea in lower Manhattan, fearing a repeat of the September 11th attacks.
Scores of rescue workers milled about the streets in front of the school, cordoned off by police, treating the dazed and anxious students and staff streaming from the building.
Initial reports suggested the blast was caused by an industrial accident or technical mishap as the students use dangerous and often flammable chemicals as they learn to weld, repair refrigerators and air conditioners, or work on automotive parts.
But further investigation seemed to indicate that the explosion was not in the eight-story building itself but in an adjacent building, where plumbers were working on a heating mechanism.
There was no indication whatsoever that the blast was planned for any nefarious purposes, a fire department spokesman emphasized.
"There was some type of an explosion and we are treating numerous people on the scene," a spokeswoman for the department said. Further details were not immediately available.
AFP
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