PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (AP) — On Saturday, police and firefighters were called to the scene of a vehicle explosion in Palm Springs, a luxurious Californian city. The explosion reverberated through the neighborhood, also causing damage to a local fertility clinic.
The incident is currently under investigation as a potential car explosion, according to two law enforcement officials who requested to remain anonymous due to the ongoing nature of the investigation. It is believed that at least one person has died, as reported by one of the officials. The authorities have not yet revealed any possible motives.
The city of Palm Springs shared via social media that the explosion occurred at 11 a.m. local time, advising residents to stay clear of the vicinity around North Indian Canyon Drive and East Tachevah Drive.
Investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are on their way to the scene to help assess what happened, according to spokesperson Nicole Lozano.
Dr. Maher Abdallah, who runs the American Reproductive Centers fertility clinic where the explosion occurred, told The Associated Press in a phone interview that all of his staff were safe and accounted for.
The explosion damaged the practice’s office space, where it conducts consultations with patients, but left the IVF lab and all of the stored embryos there unharmed.
“I really have no clue what happened,” Abdallah said. “Thank God today happened to be a day that we have no patients.”
Nima Tabrizi, 37, of Santa Monica, said he was inside a cannabis dispensary nearby when he felt a massive explosion.
“The building just shook, and we go outside and there’s massive cloud smoke,” Tabrizi said. “Crazy explosion. It felt like a bomb went off. … We went up to the scene, and we saw human remains.”
Palm Springs is a tony community in the desert about a two-hour drive east of Los Angeles, known for upscale resorts and a history of celebrity residents.
