1 man taken to Halifax hospital after propane tank explodes inside vehicle

A man is being treated by Emergency Health Services after his car exploded in a grocery store parking lot in Halifax on Thursday, littering the ground with broken glass and vehicle parts.

Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency (HRFE) responded to calls of a vehicle on fire behind the Atlantic Superstore on Quinpool Road at approximately 7:09 p.m.

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They found the driver inside the vehicle and extricated him before the fire was extinguished.

The man did not appear to have serious external injuries but was taken to the hospital as a precaution.

“We met the patient, he was still in the vehicle and he explained what happened,” said District Fire Chief Kevin Reade at the scene. “He lit up a cigarette in the car and the car exploded.”

“He was carrying a propane tank in the back seat that he forgot about and we believe that was the reason for the explosion.”

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No passersby were injured in the accident.

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Fire crews scoured the parking lot for pieces of the propane tank and searched the roof of the nearby Wendy’s restaurant in case it had been ejected.

“We actually found the propane tank was buried in some debris on the floor,” Reade explained. “So it was just the (car) roof actually blew off.”

The chief described it as a “pretty much cut-and-dry case,” but said police will remain on scene to rule out any criminal activity as a matter of protocol.

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Amanda Serroul, who lives on Robie Street, said she heard “a loud bang” and felt the explosion’s tremors from her house.

She said walked to the parking lot to check if anyone needed assistance.

“It actually kind of sounded like my roommate fell upstairs or something,” she told Global News. “It shook our entire house. We have a two-storey house, there’s like seven or eight rooms in it and it shook the whole house. It was a loud thud.”