Some Animals Saved In Petco Blast

More than 100 guinea pigs, gerbils, white mice and rats were rescued from the rubble of a Petco destroyed by a gas explosion on Friday, and buckets of fish were taken to nearby Petco stores in Woodbridge and Edison.

Five people were injured by the explosion that brought down the pet store's roof. All were Petco employees except one, a worker employed by J.F. Kiely Construction Co. Four remained in the hospital early Saturday, including the construction worker and the store's regional manager. They were listed in critical condition.

Animals were killed, but an exact number was not given.

Workers built ramps through the wreckage to recover 25 parrots and parakeets whose cages had fallen into unstable areas of the basement.

No more rescues were conducted Saturday.

Authorities are trying to determine if a gas pipeline ruptured by a work crew was properly marked.

The explosion occurred as employees were evacuating customers and animals after construction workers damaged the gas line outside the store and then smelled gas, said Shawn Underwood, spokesman for San Diego-based Petco Animal Supplies Inc.

"It's so cold," said Ursula Goetz, the director of the Monmouth County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. "It's a miracle so many of the animals have survived."

Robert P. Zoller, an attorney for Kiely Construction, told the Asbury Park Press that workers had the appropriate paperwork designating the proper places to dig.

"We are currently working with local authorities to investigate the mishap," a woman who answered the telephone at the company said, the newspaper reported.

Officials said much of the roof and floor pancaked into the building's basement, where two of the victims were trapped. Shattered glass was strewn more than 50 yards from the store; twisted panels of corrugated metal hung down from what was left of the roof.

Petco operates more than 700 stores in 47 states and the District of Columbia.