A 76-year-old man inside a house that exploded Tuesday morning in Paynesville, Minn., crawled out from the debris and suffered only minor injuries.
Dennis Pederson was at home when the explosion occurred about 8:40 a.m. in the 500 block of Morningside Avenue and caused part of the house to collapse.
The explosion also started a small fire that was burning when police arrived, Paynesville Police Chief Paul Wegner said.
Pederson was treated at the scene for minor injuries, Wegner said.
The fire also caused minor damage to a neighboring home.
It was not immediately clear what caused the explosion, but Wegner reminded anybody who smells gas or thinks there is such a smell to evacuate immediately and call authorities.
The Minnesota fire marshal and the Office of Pipeline Safety are investigating.
TIM HARLOW
