An explosion Thursday in a 12-unit , three - story Ottawa apartment building in a fashionable renovated neighborhood less than a mile from the Canadian Parliament killed a man and injured three people . Rubble , including concrete chunks the size of TVs , was sent flying as much as a full block away and damaged cars and nearby downtown buildings . Police believe the cause was either natural gas or propane . Bill Maxwell, the landlord of two nearby buildings, said the explosion sent ``huge chunks of concrete, the size of television sets'' hurtling through the air. Police smelled smoke immediately after the 11 pm blast . Two hours after the blast , firefighters rescued a middle - aged woman trapped inside her apartment . A dog brought in by police searched for other possible victims .
An explosion Thursday in a 12-unit , three - story Ottawa apartment building in a fashionable renovated neighborhood less than a mile from the Canadian Parliament killed a man and injured three people . Rubble , including concrete chunks the size of TVs , was sent flying as much as a full block away and damaged cars and nearby downtown buildings . Police believe the cause was either natural gas or propane . Police smelled smoke immediately after the 11 pm blast . Two hours after the blast , firefighters rescued a middle - aged woman trapped inside her apartment . A dog brought in by police searched for other possible victims .