Natural gas lines caught fire and exploded at a BP gas station in the west Chicago suburb of Berwyn Thursday afternoon, destroying part of the station and sparking a fire that kept burning for hours.
The storms that pounded the area were to blame.
At 3:42 p.m., the Berwyn police and fire departments were called to the 6700 block of Ogden Avenue, at Oak Park Avenue, for multiple power lines that had come down during the storms that pounded the area Thursday afternoon.
While police were on scene handling traffic control and firefighters were assisting with safety measures, two main natural gas lines at the BP Amoco station at 6749 W. Ogden Ave. ignited.
Berwyn firefighters immediately began fire suppression efforts, while Berwyn police officers evacuated nearby residents and businesses.
At 3:49 p.m., the natural gas lines exploded and the gas station collapsed completely, officials said. The office and convenience store structure at the gas station was leveled and left lying in ruins with some areas aflame.
It was natural gas, not gasoline, that was responsible for the explosion. The gasoline pumps and the roof over them remained intact.
The windows also blew out in nearby buildings. Witnesses said there were a series of explosions that took place in succession over about 10 minutes.
The witnesses said they felt vibrations from the first explosion as windows were blown out, and then they saw and heard another explosion a few blocks away in an alley — where a second fire took place.
“A lady called 911, fire truck pulled up, they kind of roped everything off. A second fire truck pulled up, and then about 10 minutes after that we heard a very loud explosion — blew our front windows out — and that’s about it,” said Tom Zednik, who works at Novi’s Beef at 6746 Ogden Ave. across the street.
Witnesses who were standing outside said an electrical transformer may have dropped down to cause the first explosion at the gas station.
“We saw debris fall from the skies,” said another man who works at Novi’s Beef, “and it hit the gas station, and everything just crumbled, and the fire got worse.”
There were also reports of a third explosion and fire. It was not clear where this was taking place.
“After a storm passes, you really don’t expect three explosions,” said Ben Ceyer.
Ceyer recalls the power going out first at his repair shop, Weimer Machine Automotive Repair Specialists at 6732-38 Odgen Ave. He stepped outside to catch a breeze, and when he did, he couldn’t believe what he witnessed.
“First thing you heard was then building buzzing, and then the explosion and the flash,” Ceyer said.
He said despite it being daylight, whatever sparked was bright and intense.
“There was a blinding explosion,” Ceyer said.
Ceyer shot video of the street as it was littered with glass from broken windows. He recalled another explosion down the alley.
“All the concrete heaved, and it looked like the devil coming out of the ground. Just fire coming out of the ground,” Ceyer said. “Didn’t know, should we run for cover, or go and look more? But interest got us to look more.”
As the fire went on burning, more and more curious neighbors came to the corner. They watched the fire department let the gas burn as they kept pouring water on what was left of the store.
The flames also spread to a tree and power lines nearby, potentially causing power outages.
Witnesses said there were about a dozen or more propane tanks sitting near the building. It was not clear if they ignited.
But the response was massive, and as of 10 p.m., the Berwyn Fire Department said everyone inside the gas station building got out safely — as the clerk working at the gas station left when the power went out.
“For all of this to happen, and three explosions, and nobody get hurt, God bless us,” Ceyer said. “God bless everybody.”
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