One person killed after explosion outside fertility clinic; police say act was ‘intentional’
Share this @internewscast.com


An explosion that heavily damaged a fertility clinic in the tony California city of Palm Springs appears to have been intentional, local authorities said. One person was found dead, and the FBI said it was sending investigators, including bomb technicians, to the scene.

Palm Springs Police Chief Andy Mills said in a statement Saturday that the blast “appears to be an intentional act of violence” and that several buildings damaged, some severely.

“There has been one fatality, the person’s identity is not known,” Mills’ statement said.

The act was being investigated as a possible car explosion, said two law enforcement officials briefed on the matter who insisted on anonymity to discuss preliminary information from an ongoing investigation. Authorities have not disclosed a motive.

FBI Los Angeles said in a social media post on X that “assets being deployed include investigators, bomb technicians & an evidence response team.” Investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were also assisting.

The city of Palm Springs said Saturday that the explosion happened at 11 a.m. local time and that residents were being asked to avoid the area around North Indian Canyon Drive near East Tachevah Drive.

Dr. Maher Abdallah, who runs the American Reproductive Centers fertility clinic, confirmed that his clinic was damaged. He 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.”

Aerial footage showed a burned-out car in a parking lot behind the building that housed the fertility clinic’s office space. The blast caved in the building’s roof and blew a wide debris field across a sidewalk and four lanes of the street on the other side of the structure.

Rhino Williams, 47, was chatting with customers at a restaurant he helps manage inside the Skylark Hotel just over a block away from the scene when he heard a huge boom. Everything rattled, he said, and Williams who has a background in aviation immediately sprinted to the scene to see if anyone was in need of help, thinking a helicopter might have crashed.

Williams saw a large dark gray plume of smoke and covered his nose with his shirt as he smelled burning plastic and rubber. He said he saw a building had “blown out” into the street, with bricks and debris scattered everywhere, and spotted a car’s front axle on fire in the building’s parking lot.

He said it was the only car in the lot that he saw. He ran into the building, calling out and peering behind the counter to see if anyone was inside. He did not hear a response and did not see anyone behind the counter.

Williams said he ran around to check on other nearby buildings. Multiple windows of the neighboring liquor store were also blown out, he said. Once he saw authorities arrive, he headed back to the hotel.

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. Its known for upscale resorts and a history of celebrity residents.

___

Tucker reported from Washington. Gene Johnson reported from Seattle.

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

Democrats Condemn Administration’s Withholding of SNAP Funds: A ‘Disgusting Dereliction of Duty

Late Friday, leading Democrats in the House criticized the Trump administration for…

Introducing Luna: The Brown Bear Making Arcola Her New Home

ARCOLA, Ill. (WCIA) — Weighing in at a hefty 300 pounds, Luna,…

Urbana Celebrates 15th Year of Pride Fest: Illinois’ Second Largest LGBTQ+ Event Returns

This past Saturday, the streets of Urbana were alive with celebration as…

Experience Spooktacular Thrills at North Augusta’s Jack-O-Lantern Jubilee Halloween Festival

NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. – The streets are set to come alive with…

Texas Woman Allegedly Embezzles $30K from Car Dealership for TikTok Shopping Spree

In Lubbock, Texas, Mashell Badley, aged 55, was taken into custody on…

Trump Considers Imposing 10% Additional Import Tax on Canada Over Delayed Removal of Anti-Tariff Advertisement

On Saturday, President Donald Trump announced plans to increase tariffs on Canadian…

Unexpected Closure: Water Leak Shuts Down JC Public Library for Saturday

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) — The Johnson City Public Library announced its…

St. Pete Police Issue 24 Citations in Sweep of Over 50 Personal Electric Vehicle Riders

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) — In an effort to curb illegal e-bike…

Oklahoma Resident Charged with Felony in Voter Fraud Case

A woman has been indicted by an Oklahoma Multi-County Grand Jury for…

New House Bill Seeks to Secure SNAP Funding Amid Potential Government Shutdown

On Friday, Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks, a Republican from Iowa, introduced a legislative…

Trump Embarks on Asia Tour Amid Prolonged U.S. Government Shutdown, Set to Meet China’s Xi

President Donald Trump embarked on his inaugural trip to Asia during his…

USF Football Narrowly Defeated by Memphis in Thrilling 34-31 Matchup

In a thrilling contest at Liberty Bowl Stadium, the 18th-ranked South Florida…