PEABODY, MASS. (WHDH) - Three people were injured when an RV exploded in Peabody Tuesday afternoon, officials said.
SKY7-HD spotted the smoking vehicle on Walker Road after 3:30 p.m. Firefighters sprayed water on the charred RV while flames leapt through the top of the vehicle.
Two men were flown by helicopter to hospitals, and one other man was taken by ambulance, according to the Peabody Fire Department. The fire chief said the three have severe burns, but all three were awake and speaking when transported.
The three were working on the vehicle at the time, according to the department. The explosion was captured on surveillance video from a nearby car.
After the fire was extinguished, only the shell of the vehicle remained. Debris and ashes could also be seen on the ground surrounding the RV.
“They got water on the fire fast and all the firefighters did a great job preventing it from spreading to the houses,” said Peabody Fire Chief Jay Dowling.
Neighbors said they heard a loud noise and looked out their windows to see the RV on fire, with smoking filling their street. A man was seen running from the RV and rolling on the ground as smoke surrounded his body.
“It was just a shock in my body, just another level of adrenaline like I’d never really felt before,” neighbor Evan Deleidi said. “I didn’t freak out on the outside, I was more freaking out on the inside and just kind of thinking, in a situation like that you got to think clearly.”
The heat from the flames burned the siding of multiple homes nearby. Sandals, pants, and a shirt were left on the ground, burned on the edges.
“We heard a big explosion, and I looked out the window and then I just saw tons of smoke going up into the sky, and you could see the flames over the house that’s across the street from me,” said neighbor John O’Donnell.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, according to the department.
Utilities crews were on the scene at 9 p.m. working on nearby electricity wires.
One of the men was released from the hospital Tuesday night, but the conditions of the other two were not publicly available.
“They’re nice people. They’re my neighbors, so we all care about them,’ O’Donnell said.
This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.
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