Chatham-Kent fire chief, Chris Case, says the danger of another explosion is real and that residents need to avoid the area indefinitely after an explosion in downtown Wheatley around 6pm on Thursday evening.
"We literally have a rubble pile with a poisonous, toxic corrosive and explosive gas coming up through the floor" he says.
Meanwhile Sylvia Jones, Ontario's solicitor general, says the province has launched an investigation after the explosion that took place at the corner of Erie Street and Talbot Street..
Officials now say 20 people were injured and three were treated in the hospital with non-life threatening injuries after the explosion.
According to a release, "gas monitoring devices placed at the site indicated the presence of gas at approximately 4:30pm, setting off alarms and activating a 9-1-1 call."
The municipality says first responders had evacuated the buildings closest to the alarm and were in the process of evacuating a wider area when the explosion occurred.
Chatham-Kent Police are asking anyone with video surveillance or dash cam footage from the downtown Wheatley area on August 26, 2021 between 4:00pm and 6:00 p.m. to please forward it to Constable Brad Hyatt at bradh@chatham-kent.ca
Kimberly Grant is the Treasurer for the Wheatley BIA.
She says she lives just outside of town on the 3rd Concession and heard the explosion.
"Everyone on our Facebook pages started reporting they heard this explosion and then there was a large smoke plume and then we realized the Pogue had blown up," she says.