Explosion in Kent apartment causes severe burns to one man | Update

At 11:15  a.m. firefighters from Kent Regional Fire Authority responded to reports of an explosion in an apartment which sent one Kent resident to the hospital with severe burns.

The explosion took place in a ground floor apartment in the 10900 block of SE 236 Street, knocking out a front bedroom window and scattering glass shards throughout the parking lot. No one on the outside was injured. The force of the explosion also broke out the sliding glass doors on the backside of the residence and left glass strewn over a nearby rockery. Several interior walls and doors were also badly damaged. There was no fire.

An adult male was treated at the scene for severe burns by Kent firefighters and King County Paramedics before being transported to a local hospital. An adult female who was also home at the time of the explosion was not injured.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) was called in to assist the Kent Fire and Police Departments because of the circumstances. The Federal Way Police Department’s bomb squad was also brought in to investigate items found in the apartment. At one point the entire apartment building was evacuated as a precaution though everyone was allowed to return shortly afterward.

Investigators from ATF, Kent Police, and Kent Fire have concluded that uncontrolled butane gas vapors were the cause of the explosion, though they are not saying at this point why the butane was present in the apartment or what caused the ignition. The investigation has been turned over to the Kent Fire Department.

More information will be published as it becomes available.

View Larger Map