San Francisco Bay Area gas explosion injures 6; home obliterated in dramatic doorbell footage | Watch

A powerful gas explosion ripped through a neighbourhood in the San Francisco Bay Area on Thursday morning, levelling at least one home, injuring six people and triggering a large fire that consumed multiple structures. The blast, which unfolded in the unincorporated community of Ashland near Hayward, sent debris skyward and shook homes across the district, leaving residents and emergency crews scrambling in its aftermath.

What triggered the devastating gas explosion in Ashland?

Authorities say the incident occurred shortly after a construction crew inadvertently ruptured an underground gas line along Lewelling Boulevard, where work had been under way to widen pavements and install bike lanes.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (PG&E) confirmed that it was alerted at around 7:35am that a non-utility construction team had damaged the pipe. Although PG&E workers arrived to isolate the line, gas continued leaking from several points.

The utility eventually halted the flow of gas at 9:25am, but the explosion erupted approximately ten minutes later.

Gas “was leaking from various locations,” PG&E said, noting that the delay in shutdown occurred because workers needed time “to isolate the line and stop the flow of gas.”

How extensive was the San Francisco Bay Area gas explosion damage and who was injured?

Fire officials reported that six people were taken to local hospitals for treatment. Alameda County Deputy Fire Chief Ryan Nishimoto said he did not yet know whether the injured were workers or residents, adding that three were transported immediately and three others had more minor injuries.

Three structures across two lots sustained severe damage, while at least one additional building suffered “minor to major damage.”

The firefighting effort involved approximately 75 personnel, some of whom were forced to retreat temporarily after feeling electric shocks from fallen power lines.

What did San Francisco Bay Area residents experience at the moment of the blast?

Doorbell camera footage, now circulating widely online, vividly captured the moment a seemingly quiet street was transformed into a scene of destruction.

Resident Brittany Maldonado described the terrifying impact from inside her home:

“We were sitting in the house and it just ... everything shook. Stuff fell off the walls and when we looked at the camera, it was like you were watching a war video.”

Maldonado, who lives directly across the street, recalled the sensation of violent shaking:

“Boxes fell over and everything shook. We thought someone had just flown off the freeway and their car was in our living room,” she said. “It was like someone had just launched a bomb.”

Moments later, she and her husband watched the footage from their Nest doorbell camera, witnessing their neighbour’s home explode in real time.

What does the San Francisco Bay Area gas explosion video footage reveal?

The video shows an excavator positioned in front of the residence shortly before the blast. A worker stands close by as the machine digs into the ground. Within seconds, an eruption engulfs the house, sending flames and debris outward as its walls and roof disintegrate.

Nearby workers, briefly stunned, then run toward the wreckage to search for victims. Several individuals are seen lifting a large fragment of debris that had crashed near the excavator.

Sirens begin to wail in the distance as police and firefighters race to the scene, with flames spreading rapidly across the destroyed structure.

How are San Francisco Bay Area authorities responding?

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced that it is dispatching a team to investigate the circumstances surrounding the explosion, including the initial pipeline strike and subsequent gas behaviour.

Local firefighters, supported by multiple engines and trucks, contained the three-alarm blaze, though the full extent of structural loss is still being assessed. The affected neighbourhood—comprised mainly of single-storey homes near two major freeways—remains partially cordoned off.