'Catastrophic' house explosion rocks Winnipeg community

WFPS on scene after a Winnipeg home in the Transcona neighborhood exploded around 11:30 this morning. Crews arrived shortly after and as they work to get the situation under control, WFPS Deputy Chief Scott Wilkinson was able to share details exactly what happened. We've had a significant catastrophic explosion of a residence on this street with damage to adjacent homes and structures. We're continuing to completely put out the fire and mitigate that. We don't. We're still working with unpaid police to identify the potential location occupants of the home of origin. Neighbors were shaken at the sound of the explosion. I thought my BBQ blew up, no injuries. Have been reported at this time and there has been no contact with the owner of the house. Carl Lent lives next door and was in his garage when the explosion happened. Take a look at this. He says he's never experienced anything like that in his life. Hard to explain, like an earthquake polishing my bike in the garage. The van door went blew open, stuff was blowing in, I was blown over, caught the bike before it fell down and another one boom blew me back again. Lent explained how as he evacuated his home, he witnessed the damage it had suffered, including his back deck, which was engulfed in flames. Got a barbecue in there. Debris could also be seen in a wide radius, including across the street. As for the resident of the home that exploded, Lent and others believe he wasn't home. I seen him leave this morning, but he comes and goes, comes and goes. I don't know if he came back home because I was in the garage. Fire and paramedic services continue to investigate the source or the cause of the explosion, and we'll have more details as they come. Drew strumming Global News Winnipeg.