Crime & Safety

Crews Recover Body At Site Of Bucks Co. Gas Station Explosion

The body of the victim presumed dead in a Bucks County gas station explosion has been recovered. Another person is critical but stable.

Crews have reportedly recovered the body of a man trapped after an underground explosion that happened Tuesday at a Bucks County gas station.

The victim, identified by multiple sources as Joe Vigilante, the gas station’s co-owner, died after an explosion at Liberty Gas Station on Bristol Pike in Bensalem.

Vigilante's body was removed from the rubble about 24 hours after the explosion. Crews located the body earlier Wednesday afternoon. Bensalem Director of Public Safety Fred Harran, in an on-air interview with CBS Philly, said at the time the body was located it could be hours before it was pulled out due to dangerous conditions and fumes underground.

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The explosion also left a 63-year-old man critically injured. He is presently listed in critical but stable condition, according to Harran.

On Wednesday morning, Battalion Chief Rob Sponheimer of Bensalem Fire Rescue said the rescue effort had changed to a recovery effort. Sponheimer, in an on-air interview with Action News, said crews worked through the night to attempt to free Vigilante, who was buried under collapsed concrete.

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"This has been a long slow operation," Harran said. "We want to make sure no one gets hurt."

Officials do not know what caused the explosion. Authorities believe the workers were cleaning a vault surrounding an 8,000 gallon gasoline tank when the explosion went off. The cause of the explosion is still being investigated.

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