Gas blast near San Francisco burns homes, kills one

A natural gas pipeline explosion ripped through a neighborhood in a San Francisco suburb on Thursday, starting fires that burned as many as 25 homes and killing at least one person, local media and officials reported.

As many as 25 people were injured by the blast and flames in San Bruno, a few miles from the San Francisco International Airport, and have been taken to local hospitals and hospitals with burn treatment centers. The local coroner’s office reported one fatality.

The gas line belongs to the northern California utility Pacific Gas & Electric Co, the company said in a statement.

Water-dropping aircraft assisted fire crew in fighting the blaze, which was spread quickly by high winds after the explosion around 6 p.m. local time.