Apr 9, 2020 1 min read

A home and business were destroyed in an explosion early Thursday in Washington Township.

Waynesburg Franklin Township Volunteer Fire Company responded to the scene of Alpha Graphics and Signs, 134 Water Dam Road, about 4:45 a.m.

Fire Chief Jeff Marshall said the owners, a husband and wife, also lived there and were home at the time of the explosion.

Marshall said the wife suffered burns on her arms and a neighbor drove her to a hospital in Morgantown, W.Va. She was then transported via ambulance to West Penn Hospital in Pittsburgh.

According to Marshall, crews battled flames at the property for more than four hours.

“There was still a lot of fire, a lot of flames. The roof was in the basement, and the walls were lying outside the foundation,” Marshall said.

The state police fire marshal is investigating the explosion. Marshall said he doubts it was suspicious.

Fire departments from Jefferson, Morris and Center townships also responded, as well as Amwell Township and Lone Pine fire departments.

“It wasn’t so much for manpower as it was a lack of local water in the area,” Marshall said.