A powerful explosion and fire ripped through the basement of Silver Lake Nursing Home in Bristol, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday, December 23, 2025, injuring multiple residents and causing the building to partially collapse.
Incident Details
The blast occurred at about 2:15 p.m. inside the basement of the 905 Tower Road facility. Firefighters reported the fire reached two alarm levels, and the force of the explosion caused the structure to collapse partially.
Emergency Response
Firefighters from Bucks, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties in Pennsylvania, along with responders from Burlington County in New Jersey, converged on the scene to extinguish the blaze and secure the premises.
Resident Impact
A nurse who works at the nursing home told NBC10 that normally around 50 people are inside the building at any one time, with residents ranging from 50 to 95 years old. She said she usually arrives at 2 p.m. but was late that Tuesday.
Nurse’s Words
The nurse said, “The building can be renovated, rebuilt, but humans cannot be rebuilt,” adding, “You can’t so I don’t want my brain to even go that way. I just pray that we all come out of this in one piece.”
Key Takeaways
- Explosion and fire occurred in the basement at 2:15 p.m. on Dec. 23, 2025.
- The blaze reached two alarms and partially collapsed the building.
- Multiple residents were injured, but officials have not released numbers or conditions.
The incident underscores the vulnerability of nursing homes to sudden disasters, and authorities are still assessing the full impact on the residents and staff.
