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Nine Hurt after Seattle Building Explosion

Several buildings were leveled and nine firefighters were injured after an explosion rocked Seattle's Greenwood neighborhood Wednesday.

Several buildings were leveled and nine firefighters were injured after an explosion rocked Seattle’s Greenwood neighborhood Wednesday.

Four businesses were damaged by an explosion near the intersection of Greenwood Avenue North and 85th Avenue North.

“I know neighbors will do everything they can to support these businesses as they begin the long and challenging task to recover and repair this incident,” Seattle Mayor Ed Murray said in a statement. “The city will also be there to do what we can to help those affected with the cleanup and help local business owners as they work to get back on their feet and reopen their doors.”

Eight Seattle Fire Department firefighters and a battalion chief received minor injuries. According to Seattle Fire spokeswoman Corey Orvold, the injured crewmembers were taken to Harborview Medical Center. According to KCPQ, all of the firefighters were released Wednesday.

Firefighters were called to the 8400 block of Greenwood Avenue at 1:04 a.m. Wednesday after a natural gas leak was reported. The explosion occurred roughly 40 minutes later.

The blast was felt throughout northwest Seattle.

According to Orvold, it’s too early to tell what caused the blast, but the gas leak appears to be the culprit.

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