One person was killed and nine others injured after a gas explosion ripped through a Christian private school in Minneapolis, starting a fire and causing a building to collapse, authorities said. A school employee was missing more than six hours after the 10:20 am CDT blast at Minnehaha Academy, Minneapolis Fire Chief John Fruetel told a news conference, and crews were searching the rubble in the hope of finding that person alive.
Fruetel declined to identify the person who was killed, but the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported that it was Ruth Berg, a 47-year-old receptionist at the school who was engaged to be married.
Family members told local news channel KARE that John Carlson, an 81-year-old custodian, was still missing and that no one had been able to reach him.The nine people who were injured were taken to local hospitals, and one was in critical condition, Fruetel said.
Authorities said there were early indications that a ruptured gas line may have led to the explosion and that it was caused by contractors working at the school. The academy confirmed on Facebook that there had been a gas leak and explosion at its Upper School.
The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said on Twitter that its agents, fire investigators and trained canines were at the site of the explosion.
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