An Explosion Has Just Happened At A Canadian Military Base & Injuries Are Reported
Emergency crews are on scene.
An explosion has happened at a military base on Vancouver Island, according to reports.
The incident occurred at Canadian Forces Base Comox and a spokesperson told CTV that the blast happened in an unused building next to the Comox Valley Search and Rescue centre.
In an update on Friday morning, emergency crews have now said that 10 people were injured in the blast, including one person who was airlifted to hospital in a serious condition.
The building where the explosion occurred was formerly a barrack, according to Dean Stoltz, a CHEK News reporter at the scene.
Twitter user Carol Wain took this picture from outside the base and said people "working nearby" had been taken to hospital.
Gas explosion at #cfbcomox
2 people were working nearby and one has gone to hospital #comoxvalley #vancouverisland pic.twitter.com/vXGq75E3GC
— Carol Wain (@carolwain) November 18, 2021
Others who live nearby have reported hearing the explosion at 9 a.m. local time.
The Town of Comox tweeted: "Comox Fire responded with two engines and 12 firefighters to provide backup. Their services were not required but we're (sic) glad to provide assistance where needed."
According to local media outlet Comox Valley Record, Lt.-Col. Mike Juillet said: "An explosion happened at one of our accommodations buildings, currently under renovation.
"Our focus right now is assisting our injured personnel. The building that was under renovation was heavily damaged and the cause has still not been confirmed. We will have more info on that after we attend to our personnel. No aircraft or airfield facilities are involved. Air operations are not affected, whatsoever.
"I don't have a total number of injured personnel right now… we will provide that at a later briefing."