Two people were injured Thursday morning in an explosion and fire at a Shell fuel station and convenience store in Denver’s Valverde neighborhood that was caused by a broken natural gas line, fire officials said.
Denver Fire Department crews responded to the explosion at 510 N. Bryant St. at 11:29 a.m., Division Chief Robert Murphy said.
“The gas station was fully involved with fire, and it was pretty clear there had been an explosion because of all these remnants in the street,” Murphy said.
Firefighters began searching the burning building after bystanders told them two people were still inside, but they soon learned the victims were already out, Murphy said. Both were taken by ambulance to Denver Health with moderate burn and blast injuries.
Investigators found the explosion was caused by a broken Xcel Energy natural gas line that allowed fumes to accumulate before exploding inside the store, Murphy said. Firefighters were able to contain most of the flames within 15 minutes, but the fire was not fully out until Xcel crews arrived several hours later to clamp the broken gas line.
The explosion also closed roads southwest of the Sixth Avenue-Interstate 25 interchange, police said.
Police initially believed the incident involved a driver who crashed into the gas station but later determined that was not the case.
Xcel Energy crews were still on scene Thursday night, spokesperson Lisa Andersen said in an email. No other customers were impacted by the incident and Xcel is looking into what caused the break.
Shell officials could not be reached for comment about the explosion.
There are no ongoing safety concerns about hazardous materials related to the fire and explosion, Murphy said.
