Deadly Pennsylvania nursing home explosion happened hours after gas leak was reported, NTSB report says
A deadly nursing home explosion in Bristol Township, Pennsylvania, in December 2025 happened hours after a gas leak was reported, according to a preliminary report released Wednesday.
Two people died, and at least 20 were injured in an explosion and fire at the Bristol Health and Rehab Center on Dec. 23, 2025. Officials said a third person died on Jan. 5 from injuries suffered during the accident.
At least two lawsuits have been filed in the wake of the explosion. One accuses PECO, its parent company, Exelon, and the owners of the nursing home, Saber Healthcare Holdings and Saber Healthcare Group, of negligence.
Another lawsuit filed in early January on behalf of two residents injured in the blast alleges the explosion was "carelessness, negligence, and recklessness" of the defendants PECO, Saber Healthcare Group and its former operator, Silver Lake.
What the NTSB preliminary report says
The National Transportation Safety Board released new details and a timeline of the explosion Wednesday. In its preliminary report, the NTSB found that it happened within hours of a gas leak being reported to PECO and Exelon.
The maintenance director of the nursing home reported smelling gas coming from the basement boiler room and the first-floor hallway to PECO around 11 a.m., according to the report.
An Exelon technician arrived at the building around 11:50 a.m. and identified the leak coming from the boiler room, the report says. The technician requested help repairing it to their foreman, and a meter services worker came around 1:20 p.m. to work on the leak.
According to the report, "both the foreman and the meter services technician had less than one year of experience in their current roles with Exelon."
Shortly before the explosion, the maintenance director and other workers told investigators they smelled gas coming from the basement, first floor and second floor. The explosion happened around 2:15 p.m. with about 180 people inside.
Exelon emergency responders arrived at the scene around 2:42 p.m. and isolated natural gas flow to the building about an hour later, according to the report. A bar hole test identified subsurface gas outside of the nursing home around 5 p.m., the report says.
"Bar hole testing describes a gas measurement technique in which a small-diameter hole is made in the ground, a bar hole probe is inserted into the hole, and a gas measurement is made," according to the report.
The NTSB report says Exelon provided gas to the nursing home through a system that included a 1.25-inch underground coated steel service line and an indoor rotary meter set located in the basement.
NTSB members collected the indoor meter set and parts of the service line that didn't hold pressure during testing for further examination, the report says.
The investigation remains ongoing and will include reviewing Exelon's pipeline safety management system and how the company trains its personnel and its operator qualifications, according to the report. Investigators will also further examine physical evidence collected from the scene.
Since the explosion, a PECO spokesperson said the company has assessed its existing indoor meters and reprioritized relocating them to outdoors, strengthened procedures and training protocols, and updated its public outreach process.
"We want to express our most heartfelt sympathies to the families and friends of those who lost their lives, to those who were injured, to the residents who have been displaced, and to the entire Bristol community affected by this tragic event," the spokesperson said in a statement in part. "Independent of any external investigation, PECO remains committed to the integrity of our system and ensuring our processes and procedures are designed to address a range of situations. Nevertheless, we recognize the importance of continuous improvement and vigilance with respect to the safe and reliable delivery of electric and natural gas service."