Lake View, N.Y. (WBEN) - A 78-year-old woman is dead, while her 78-year-old husband is in critical condition at Erie County Medical Center after a house explosion in the Hamlet of Lake View on Monday night.
Hamburg police has identified the victims is Joene Pease and her husband John.
The explosion happened shortly after 8:30 p.m. Monday on West Lane. That's when dispatchers in Hamburg received several 9-1-1 calls from the area.
"Within two minutes, our patrol officer confirmed those reports that the house had exploded," said Hamburg's emergency manager Sean Crotty during a press briefing late Monday morning. "The Town of Hamburg police officer facilitated a rescue of one of the victims, the male victim, pulled him from the debris pile, and he got immediate medical attention by the first responders from one of the 20 agencies that assisted us at the scene."
That police officer was treated for a minor ankle injury, while one of the responding firefighters from Lake View Fire District was treated and released at a local hospital for smoke inhalation.
Officials are hailing the officer's efforts as nothing short of heroic.
The explosion inflicted damage to several surrounding homes in the neighborhood, including blown out windows. The one house next door to the house explosion went up in flames shortly after the explosion, resulting in a total loss of the property. It was demolished in the early afternoon hours on Tuesday.
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A number of first responders remain on the scene Tuesday after more than 100 first responders from several local municipalities responded to the fire. This included agencies from Hamburg, Orchard Park, Evans, Eden, North Boston and Buffalo.
The cause of the explosion is still under investigation, at this time.