Three Dead After Explosion Levels Business in Hillsboro
HILLSBORO, Ohio — Three people are dead after an explosion destroyed a business in Hillsboro, officials said Tuesday night.
Paint Creek Joint EMS & Fire said crews responded to Jimbo’s Auto Repair on U.S. 62 for a reported explosion. Video and photos sent to WCPO show billowing smoke and flames above a leveled building in downtown Hillsboro.
Clint Moore was working outside a block from the explosion when he said it nearly knocked him off of his back loader.
“I was terrified,” Moore said.
Fire Chief David Manning told reporters that the three people missing in the explosion have all been found dead in the rubble. A fourth person was transported to the hospital.
Moore said he tried to approach the building with several others to see what they could do to help, but something inside of the building continued to explode and the flames were too intense.
“Everyone was scrambling around the building, cars were burning up, it was pandemonium,” he said. “It was a real war zone. It was unreal.”
Paint Creek Fire Chief David Manning said their crews could feel the force of the explosion four blocks away at the fire house.
“It definitely did rock and shake the area,” Manning said.
As the sun went down and temperatures dropped into the low 20s, Manning said the weather became a factor for the dozens of fire fighters working on scene.
Hillsboro city workers brought salt trucks to the area to salt the soaked roads to prevent them from freezing over.
“It’s definitely a challenge, but we try to do everything we can as safely as possible,” he said.
Those three bodies will be taken to the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office.
A WCPO crew is at the scene. This story will be updated with more information when it is available.