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A propane explosion destroyed a home in Brentwood, Long Island, according to police. It remains unclear what ignited the gas. Two, 200-lb. gas tanks were found at the home where a toddler was killed and 14 people were injured.
The two-story home at 12 Prospect Drive was destroyed in the 11:55 a.m. Tuesday blast with wood and other debris scattered across the lot. Debris was on the roof of a neighboring home and several nearby homes were damaged. Two adjacent homes, 14 Prospect Drive and 30 Prospect Drive, were condemned because of blast damage.
Video footage from the scene showed firefighters digging through the huge pile of rubble.
Seven people, including an 18-month-old child, were inside the house when it exploded. They included the child's parents, a real estate professional, a plumber and two other people. That child, identified as Rah-quan Palmer, was later pronounced dead.
His mother, Christina Morgan, 23, and his father Rashamel Palmer, 28, were also injured in the blast along with two other residents of 12 Prospect Dr. They were identified as Calvin Harris, 23, and Irving Justiniano, 63.
Michael Ray, a plumber with Your Town Cesspool Plumbing & Heating and Patricia Salegna-Maqueda, with State Farm Insurance were seriously injured. They were in the home regarding a claim submitted for flooding.
Patricia Arnoth, 47, of 14 Prospect Drive was injured as a result of the explosion. Her son, Michael Arnoth, 24, was injured in the aftermath of the home explosion.
Seven Suffolk County Police officers and two firefighters were injured, treated at hospitals and released.
Homicide and arson investigators are working to find out why the house blew up, but officials said that propane gas may have been the cause.
The Red Cross said that disaster mental health workers were among the volunteers sent to the home.
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Photo by Kerry Drew/Fox 5 News
