Public safety officials said they are looking into cut gas pipe found in the basement of a Silver Spring apartment building that was leveled following a massive explosion.

       Montgomery County Fire Chief Scott Goldstein said investigators are still working to determine a cause and ignition source of the blast that left 14 injured on Thursday but said it’s possible that a maintenance employee doing plumbing work could have cut the pipe.

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       The chief said at a Friday afternoon news conference that canines trained to find human remains alerted firefighters to a possible find in the front left corner of the building. Though all residents are accounted for, fire officials said they will continue to search the area in case there is someone beneath the rubble.

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       Three of the buildings at the Friendly Garden Apartments remain uninhabitable but three other buildings are expected to be able for residents to return by 8 p.m., he said.

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       At a news conference earlier Friday, Goldstein said the injury count increased from 10 to 14, including three who suffered serious injuries and were still at hospitals. The others had “minor to moderate injuries,” he said.

       Firefighter crews stayed overnight at the complex in the 2400 block of Lyttonsville Road, according to Pete Piringer, a spokesman for the Montgomery County Fire Department.

       The incident at the complex unfolded around 10:30 a.m. Thursday. Residents reported hearing a loud boom and felt an explosion before smoke and debris spread. A video captured the explosion, and people could be heard screaming. Firefighters and bystanders rushed to help rescue people.

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       Sylvia Bunyasi, 48, was at home in a nearby building when the explosion happened. “The building was totally engulfed. We could feel it; we could feel how hot it was,” she said.

       Fire and rescue responded after an explosion at an apartment building in Silver Spring, Md., on March 3. (The Washington Post)

       Goldstein said there had been no reports of gas leaks at the complex since Jan. 1. Some residents said they smelled gas before the Thursday blast.

       Silver Spring apartment explosion sends 10 to hospital, leaves others missing

       He said a maintenance worker for a management company had been in a building at the time of the explosion and was working on a “plumbing problem.” Goldstein said he did not believe there was “anything flammable or a torch involved” in the repair work. He said the worker was hurt in the explosion but has been talking to investigators.

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       Goldstein said investigators are looking into whether the work the person was doing led to the explosion or if there was another cause. But he said they won’t be able to figure it out until crews get through all of the debris, a process that will at some point involve clearing areas by hand, and investigate the buildings.

       Six buildings were impacted in the fire and explosion, leaving 225 residents displaced. Three of the buildings were deemed unsafe, Goldstein said, and crews are working to restore power to three others that can be occupied but must first fix a nearby transformer that was damaged.

       He said he expects crews to be on the scene for at least three days to deal with the complex investigation and debris search.

       County Executive Marc Elrich (D) said at Friday’s news conference that about $220,000 had been raised to help those who were displaced and that “very few” of the residents stayed at a county shelter because most had gone to stay with family and friends.

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       Elrich said the complex had a fire inspection on Feb. 2 and a “tri-annual” inspection in September 2021. Goldstein said the more frequent inspections look at alarms, sprinkler systems and exits. The tri-annual inspections look at “tenant living spaces,” according to Goldstein.

       “If it is something structural or a defect,” Elrich said, officials would look at regulations.

       “If it’s human error that’s not something we can regulate,” he said. “Maybe better training is needed.”

       Goldstein said crews were still looking for any visitors or a delivery people who make have been in the complex.

       “We are not discounting that someone isn’t in the rubble pile,” Goldstein said. He said trained dogs remained to look for survivors or bodies.

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       On Thursday, the dogs indicated possible “alerts” that at least one body was under the rubble, Goldstein had said.

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       The nonprofit group that manages Friendly Gardens said in a statement that it was “enormously relieved” that all known residents are “are safe and accounted for.”

       “Our management team is actively working with county officials, housing authorities, and service organizations to house and support Friendly Garden residents and staff,” said Robin McGrew, chair of the Friendly Gardens board of directors.