Five people were injured by flying debris.
LEWISTON – Two buildings were blown apart, five people were hurt and windows blew out of nearby businesses when an explosion rocked the downtown area Monday afternoon.
The 4 p.m. blast at Lewiston Radiator Works hurled debris for hundreds of yards. A vacant building next to it crumbled to the ground. The explosion sent a mushroom-shaped cloud billowing high into the sky over the city.
Two hours after the blast tore through Radiator Works and the former Hotel Holly, the buildings burst into flames. The fire, visible for miles, sent rescue crews scrambling. Traffic was snarled for hours in both Lewiston and Auburn.
“It was total chaos,” said 30-year-old Steve Dulac, who was driving by when the building exploded.
Two men working at Radiator Works at 95 Main St. escaped with minor injuries when the blast tore through the building. Three people driving by the scene of the blast were treated after their vehicle windows exploded and debris rained down on them.
“It was a big bang. Oh, I’ve never had a feeling like this, I’m telling you,” said Geraldine Moreau, who was riding in a car on Main Street when the explosion ripped through the buildings next to her.
Moreau and her son Paul both escaped with cuts after the windows blew out of their Chrysler and a piece of plywood crashed into the backseat.
Another man was driving toward Auburn when the building exploded behind him, forcing his Jeep out of control and sending shrapnel into his vehicle.
“There’s this big boom and my car started to swerve in the road. A piece of wood came flying through the passengers’ side. There was stuff flying all around my car,” said Paul Amnott. “I looked down and my pants were covered with blood. I had blood pouring down my face.”
Amnott, like other victims, was taken to Central Maine Medical Center. None of the injuries was considered life-threatening.
“It’s almost a miracle that no one was killed,” said deputy police Chief Michael Bussiere. “When you think about how many people who were in the area at the time, it’s incredible. We were lucky.”
In nearby banks, offices and apartments, tiles fell from ceilings, windows shattered and buildings shook from the blast.
‘A big bang’
“It felt like the entire building lurched right up. There was a big bang and the whole building seemed to twist,” said 48-year-old Paul Cole, who lives in Gateway Apartments, a five-story building at Canal and Main streets. “I could hear all the glass breaking on Lisbon Street.”
Cole said he looked out his apartment window where he could see the vacant Hotel Holly crumbling to the ground from the explosion.
“I saw the whole building fall straight down. You could see all this debris blow right across the street,” Cole said. “There was more debris way up in the sky and it was still falling. It was like a war zone.”
People as far away as Lisbon reported feeling the concussion from the blast. Several people who live in New Auburn said their walls trembled and photos fell from the wall. On Main Street and on the Longley Bridge, traffic came to a stop as the blast rumbled across the area.
“It shook my truck. It shook the entire bridge. I looked in my rearview mirror and I couldn’t see most of the buildings back there. It was all shrouded in smoke,” said Dulac, who was driving into Auburn on the Longley Bridge.
“Debris came out from the side and then it just rolled into the air,” Dulac said. “I got out of my truck and looked across the bridge. I looked up in the air. I thought, ‘there have got to be people dead back there.'”
A window fan blown from one of the buildings landed on the center of the Longley Bridge. A fire bell was found near the corner of Main and Lincoln streets. Most of the debris from the blast landed across Main Street, next to Central Maine Power Co. offices.
“It was complete chaos for a moment,” said Jake Sasseville, who was driving near the Longley Bridge at the time of the blast. “A massive ball of fire seemed to erupt in the air, just for a second.”
Roads blocked
Fearing more explosions, police blocked a stretch of Main Street from the bridge to Park Street. Sections of Lisbon, Canal and Lincoln streets were also blocked. But hundreds of people flocked to the area, wandering from nearby offices or apartments to see what had caused the explosion.
“I looked around and windows were being blown right out of buildings,” said 25-year-old Brian Goding, who was inside a social club on Lisbon Street when he heard the blast. “I came outside and there was a big cloud of smoke.”
Holes were blown through the windows at Final Harvest, Terry’s Bridal, Drapeau’s Costume and other shops on Lisbon Street. Just about every window on the Canal Street side of Androscoggin Bank was shattered in the blast.
“It was such a big concussion,” said Cindy Martin, who ran from her office at the bank building. “I could feel it more than I could hear it.”
Before inspectors could enter the blown out buildings to search for a cause, fire roared through the wreckage at the former Hotel Holly. At about 6 p.m., the collapsed building went up in flames. The blaze sent fire crews scrambling and backup was called from nearby cities and towns.
Police closed off more areas around the scene and tried to push onlookers back from the burning building.
The flames were brought under control in about an hour, but crews were expected to remain at the scene into Tuesday morning. Main Street from Lincoln to Cedar Street would be kept closed while debris was being cleared, police said.
Cause investigated
Police and rescue crews were joined by city inspectors and utility crews Monday night as an investigation was launched into the cause of the blast. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms was ready to send investigators to the area if needed.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office also sent inspectors to the scene, although it would be early Tuesday before the area would cool enough so they could begin an investigation.
The building that houses Lewiston Radiator Works was constructed of cinder blocks. The former Hotel Holly was made mostly of wood.
At the turn of the century, the hotel was considered one of the more upscale spots in the city. Over time it became a speakeasy that drew gamblers and exotic dancers.
The hotel business closed in the mid-1980s. It was the property of Richard Hollis, who also owns the Radiator Works next door. The former hotel was being used as a warehouse for the radiator shop.
In January 2002, Radiator Works sprinklers doused flames inside the building before they could spread to nearby welding tanks filled with flammable gas, fire investigators said at the time.
By late Monday night, the area around the scene of the blast was still clogged with emergency vehicles. Police expected to keep officers at the scene throughout the night to keep people away.
“We basically have two shifts working right now,” said Bussiere, the deputy police chief.
Extra police officers were also being sent out to keep an eye on businesses where windows had blown out, Bussiere said. In the morning, more officers would be on the streets to help control traffic.
“The morning commute may be kind of hectic,” Bussiere said. “We hope people will find alternate routes around the scene.”
At home after his ordeal, Amnott said he had returned to his Jeep only to find it mostly destroyed. He was also beginning to feel the wounds suffered from the explosion.
“I’m a little sore. My cheeks are swollen up like a chipmunk,” he said. “Still, I feel pretty lucky. I’m thanking the good Lord I’m still here.”
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