Early Friday morning, May 15 at 0145 hours (1:45 am), units were dispatched for an explosion in the area of the 2200 block of Flag Marsh Road. Carroll County 911 received numerous calls from as far away as 10 miles reporting the explosion. Howard County E43 arrived on the scene 8 minutes after dispatch and reported one house flattened and others with significant damage. Flag Marsh Road was blocked by debris from the blast. Nearby homes were quickly checked and evacuated while additional arriving units began stretching hose lines to protect the exposures and fight the fire in the remains of the leveled home. Water supply became an immediate issue, so a tanker task force was requested along with a RIT (Rapid Intervention Team) dispatch. A draft site was established to fill tankers that shuttled water to the scene. The site was set up on Newport Road at the bridge. The Newport Road bridge dry hydrant was found damaged and unusable, so sleeves were placed into the water to establish a draft by B105. Amazingly, there were no injuries to the residents of the nearby homes, and there were no firefighter injuries during the incident. One home was completely destroyed, two homes were severely damaged, and 4 others were damaged to some lesser degree. The home where the explosion occurred was unoccupied at the time of the explosion, the other homes were all occupied.
The Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office has determined that the explosion involved propane gas that was used for heating and cooking in the home. Further details of the explosion are still under investigation.
The American Red Cross was on the scene assisting residents whose homes were severely damaged.
Units from the Mt. Airy, Lisbon, Winfield, Sykesville, Damascus, New Windsor, West Friendship, Laytonsville, and Howard County DFRS responded to the scene. The Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office, Maryland State Police, Carroll County Sheriff's Office, Howard County Police, and Carroll County Building Inspectors all participated in the scene security or investigation of the incident.
Fire and Rescue units cleared the scene at approximately 0730 hours (7:30 am), but investigating agencies were on the scene well in to the afternoon.
