LACKAWANNA, N.Y. (WBEN) – An explosion at 91 Bedford Avenue on Tuesday morning killed a woman in her 90s who lived alone, according to neighbors and first responders.
Lackawanna police and fire both responded to the home around 7:30 a.m. Police confirm Irene Sanok, 92 years old, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Volunteer firefighter Michael Salamone lives across the street from the home and immediately jumped into action after he saw the explosion, which he described as a white flash and then falling debris.
“The woman that’s living in the house that exploded, her routine is that she usually goes to the store about 9:30 in the morning and this was around 7:30 in the morning,” Salamone said. “Her car is still there.
We all love her and always checked on her every day.”
Approximately seven homes on the street are damaged. The two next door to the blast were extensively damaged. "No one else, thank God, was injured," said Salamone.
"I've never seen anything like this. It was disastrous."
Lackawanna Fire Chief James Fino updated reporters late Tuesday morning.
"Around 7:20am, we received a call for something burning in the road and also received a report of a loss of power. Upon arrival, we had a pretty big debris field. There was one fatality." Fino said there was also a fire and several other houses were affected. "Right now the cause is undetermined. It's under investigation," he said.