A home in Arlington, Virginia, exploded as police were investigating a man who fired a flare gun dozens of times from inside Monday night, police said.
Neighbors reported possible shots fired around 4:45 p.m., and police officers determined someone had fired a flare gun, Arlington County police spokesperson Ashley Savage told reporters.
After 8 p.m., as officers were trying to conduct a search warrant at the house, “the suspect inside the residence discharged several rounds,” Savage said.
“The house subsequently exploded,” she said. The fire was under control by around 10:40 p.m., the fire department said, but spot fires were being addressed.
Officials have not been able to go into the home and could not confirm whether there were any deaths. The suspect was inside when the explosion occurred, Savage said.
“At this point, we’re only aware of one individual who was inside the home,” Savage said.
The person had fired the flare gun around 30 to 40 times “from inside his residence into the surrounding neighborhood,” police said in a statement early Tuesday.
The rounds fired inside the home while police were there, and before the explosion, are believed to have been from a firearm, police said. The blast happened at around 8:25 p.m., the