An explosion and fire have been reported at a nursing home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
Action News has learned there are also multiple reports of people being trapped.
The incident happened around 2:15 p.m. at the Silver Lake Nursing Home in the 900 block of Tower Road in Bristol Township.
Action camera video showed flames shooting from the building. Debris could be seen scattered around the area.
An explosion and fire have been reported at a nursing home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
A woman who works at the facility said she has been trying to contact co-workers but no one is answering their calls.
A man who attended the scene said his wife worked at a nursing home and he had not heard from her.
The public was asked to avoid the area due to the massive emergency response, which police described as a “mass casualty incident”.
Rescue crews arrived from neighboring Montgomery County, Philadelphia and New Jersey.
There was no word on injuries yet.
It was not immediately clear what caused the reported explosion.
“I saw the smoke and I saw fire truck or ambulance after fire truck or ambulance, coming from all over the city,” state Rep. Tina Davis, whose district includes the center, told The Associated Press. She drove to the scene but did not want to interfere with rescue efforts.
Davis said there was discussion of using a nearby school as a temporary evacuation zone. The nursing home has 174 beds, according to state reports.
District buses will take people from emergency scenes at nursing homes to the reunion center at Truman High School, said Bristol Township School Board President Jim Morgan.
He said officials were working to set up beds and provide residents with water and other needs. As of 4 p.m., no one had shown up at the school, Morgan said.
“We understand there are people trapped inside,” said Ruth Miller, spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.
“It’s really sad – it’s a hopeful time of year. It’s a sad thing for everyone and the families and workers out there. I hope there’s a positive outcome from this. We don’t know yet,” Davis said.
Stay tuned to Action News and 6abc.com as this story develops.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
