OAN Staff Cory Hawkins
6:05 PM – Tuesday, December 23, 2025
A suspected natural gas explosion occurred at the Bristol Health & Rehab Center, in Bristol Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, causing a partial building collapse and an explosion that set off a large fire.
Recently renamed under new ownership, Bristol Health & Rehab Center was formerly known as Silver Lake Healthcare Center.
Multiple elderly residents and staff members were left injured or dead, with at least two deaths being reported by officials. Officials have also since indicated that several people may still be unaccounted for.
Authorities stated that a thunderous noise erupted on Tower Road in Bristol at about 2:15pm.
Fire and EMS crews from multiple jurisdictions across Pennsylvania and New Jersey quickly converged on the scene, with dozens of first responders aiding in urgent rescue efforts amid thick black plumes of smoke billowing from the nursing home. The explosion occurred while a PECO utility crew was on site investigating reports of a gas odor.
Press secretary at the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, Nils Hagen-Frederiksen, further described the situation to reporters.
“While crews were on site, an explosion occurred at the facility. PECO crews shut off natural gas and electric service to the facility to ensure the safety of first responders and local residents,” the utility company PECO said in a statement.
The explosion caved in the roof of the senior home, leveling large parts of the building and leaving the entire structure at risk of collapse.
“I’ve been briefed on the incident at Silver Lake Nursing Home in Bucks County, and my Administration is in contact with local officials and first responders on the ground,” Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro posted on X.
Three elderly residents could be seen on stretchers, in addition to six other individuals being carried out by a heroic bystander who was among the first to arrive at the scene.
“The glass walled room was there, and it’s all blown out now,” Joe Westergon, who lives a few blocks from Silver Lake, reported in an interview.
“I think they were doing arts and crafts, They were just sitting there in their wheelchairs. I was taking them over to the curb and sitting them down. I was trying to keep them as calm as possible. They’ll live but they were pretty tore up — some were bleeding.”
The facility is a for-profit health care center that provides short-term rehabilitation and therapy to seniors in need, according to its website. According to ProPublica, The facility cares for an average of 158 patients daily.
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