Officials: Explosion Damages Home, Woman Inside Not Hurt

SMITHSBURG, Md. (AP) — A propane gas explosion caused about $200,000 in damage to a western Maryland home on Wednesday, but a woman who was home at the time wasn't hurt, fire investigators said.

The explosion occurred in the basement furnace room of the two-story Smithsburg home with in-law suite in the basement, the Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office said in a news release. A woman who was inside the home when the explosion happened wasn't injured, officials said.

Master Deputy State Fire Marshal Ed Ernst said the blast blew out some doors in the basement, The Herald-Mail reported.

The furnace was fed by a line from an underground propane tank in the backyard, he said.

Residents could not immediately return to the home and the cause of the explosion was under investigation, Ernst said. Investigators could not rule out a failure in the service line or the furnace itself, according to the release.