(TAUNTON, Mass.) -- A woman in Massachusetts escaped her home moments before it exploded and burst into flames Sunday, police said. 
 
 Police identified 52-year-old Laurie Beliveau, of Taunton, as the sole resident of the two-story, single-family home. 
 
 Beliveau was attempting to repair her gas-fueled hot water heater and removed the gas shut-off valve, State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan and Taunton Fire Chief Timothy J. Bradshaw said in a statement Monday. This misstep caused gas to pour into the basement where it was ignited by an unknown ignition source. 
 
 Several unnamed bystanders called the Taunton Fire Department at about 3:53 p.m. One woman reported she "felt the ground shake" while another saw smoke billowing from the rooftop, according to recordings of the 911 calls obtained by ABC News. 
 
 Beliveau's neighbor Paul Saltalamacchia said Beliveau ran two doors down to his home screaming for help. 
 
 "We, my son and I, got her a pair of sandals and a glass of water and within about five minutes the house was in flames and the windows exploded," Saltalamacchia told ABC News Monday. 
 
 Saltalamacchia said Beliveau told him she was upstairs in her bedroom when the closet doors blew off and that she had "done something to the furnace" before the explosion. 
 
 "She was hysterically talking to the fire department about a gas fire place," Saltalamacchia said, noting that she also lamented that her pet cockatoo was still inside. 
 
 Lt. Kevin C. Farrar, communications officer for the Taunton Fire Department, said the "homeowner may have attempted her own repair on the [natural gas] water heater." 
 
 Farrar said the incident was a graphic reminder to homeowners not to attempt repairs unless by a qualified person. 
 
 Saltalamacchia said Beliveau is divorced with two adult children. He said another neighbor called Beliveau's ex-husband but did not hear back from him. 
 
 There is an ongoing investigation, but Taunton Deputy Fire Chief Scott Dexter said the department suspects a gas leak caused the blast that leveled the home. 
 
 "Everything caved in. It's just a pile of lumber. Nothing is salvageable," Dexter told ABC News. 
 
 Investigators from the fire marshal's office, state police department, Office of Public Utilities and the Columbia Gas of Massachusetts were at the scene this morning, Dexter said. 
 
 Don DiNunno, communications and community relations manager for Columbia Gas, said an explosion of this magnitude in a suburban neighborhood is rare. 
 
 "It does happen but thankfully very, very infrequently. But one's more than enough. Thankfully, the lone occupant was able to get out," he told ABC News. 
 
 DiNunno said all the utilities at Beliveau's house have been turned off. Columbia Gas advises residents to leave their homes immediately and avoid operating any utilities in the event of a leak. 
 
 The Northern Bristol County Registry of Deeds has an affidavit filed in August regarding a foreclosure of Beliveau's home, the Taunton Gazette reported. 
 
 Copyright © 2015, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. ||||| A huge natural gas explosion injured at least 16 people, destroyed a decades-old restaurant and rocked the iconic Country Club Plaza on Tuesday, just before the busy evening rush. 
 
 Area hospitals reported treating four people with critical injuries including burns and smoke inhalation. One patient was found and transported to a hospital about four hours after the event. 
 
 One person apparently had not been accounted for. 
 
 The area near 48th Street and Belleview Avenue was chaotic after the blast, which occurred shortly after 6 p.m. at JJs, at 910 W. 48th St. just west of the Plaza 
 
 It sounded like thunder, but it felt like an earthquake, said Tracey Truitt, a lawyer at Polsinelli Shughart, who was working in a nearby building. 
 
 The force knocked out windows at least a half-block away and was felt nearly a mile away. Flames soared two-thirds higher than the building into the evening sky. Bricks and broken glass were strewn around, and nearby residents and office workers gathered outside and watched as the injured were carried away. The odor of gas remained in the air, causing apprehension about a possible additional explosion. 
 
 There were no initial reports of deaths, but officials brought cadaver dogs to the scene to explore the ruins. 
 
 Witnesses reported a strong odor of natural gas in the area, some for hours before the explosion occurred about 6 p.m., and some reported that workers were using backhoes just to the east of JJs before the explosion. 
 
 Missouri Gas Energy issued a statement late Tuesday saying early indications are that a contractor doing underground work struck a natural gas line, but the investigation continues. 
 
 The Missouri Public Service Commission will likely investigate because it has regulatory oversight. 
 
 The explosion rocked Natalie Rollins, who lives several blocks to the west, near 46th and Holly streets, as she was getting ready to leave her apartment and head to the gym. 
 
 The windows shook, she said. Blinds fell from their attachments. Soon she saw a massive, black cloud of smoke rising from the Plaza and massing over the rooftops to the west. 
 
 Sharon Fisher was in the House of Elan Med Spa next door to JJs when the explosion hit. 
 
 I put my hands over my head, dropped to the floor, looked up and saw glass flying in pieces from the ceiling, Fisher said. The walls started buckling. I could see daylight when it stopped. We ran out of there as fast as we could. 
 
 The corner restaurant was mostly flattened, save for a small part of the facade. 
 
 Witnesses said there were relatively few patrons inside JJs at the time of the explosion. The streets around the restaurant had been blocked off while MGE workers investigated the heavy smell of natural gas. The workers instructed everyone inside the restaurant and bar to evacuate. 
 
 Four employees of JJs, who were hugging each other and crying after the blast, said they had started canceling reservations for the evening at 5 p.m. because the smell was so bad. When the gas company told them to leave, they said, they had to run. Some were in the alley when the explosion occurred. 
 
 JJs owner Jimmy Frantze was driving back to Kansas City from Oklahoma on Tuesday night. 
 
 It was 28 years of a great restaurant, and then it has to end like this, Frantze said. I want to check on my employees. I want to make sure they are all right. 
 
 Mayor Sly James and City Manager Troy Schulte went to the Plaza in the aftermath. 
 
 The Fire Department and first responders have done a remarkable job, James said. 
 
 About 100 firefighters were called to the four-alarm blaze, Kansas City Fire Chief Paul Berardi said. The gas was shut off and the fire was under control shortly after 8 p.m. 
 
 Mark Ebbitts, who works at nearby Shelton Travel Service, also stopped at JJs after work. He saw Missouri Gas Energy workers inside JJs with gas detectors. Ebbitts said an alarm went off, but the gas workers did not appear to panic. 
 
 They did not have a sense of urgency about them, Ebbitts said. They didnt say we had to go. 
 
 Other patrons of the restaurant said the Fire Department walked through about 5:20 p.m. and told the owners to turn off their ovens and grills and to open the doors to the outside. One of the bartenders turned off the patio heaters outside. One patron said there were seven to nine people in the restaurant when he left. 
 
 There may have been two explosions. A contractor working on the reported gas leak outside JJs said there was a small explosion outside the restaurant and some of the gas workers then ran inside to order everybody out. 
 
 Several employees of the Plaza Physicians Group, in an office across the alley from JJs, smelled gas around 1 p.m. and told a member of the street crews but they didnt seem to pay any attention. The smell grew stronger through the day, to the point an employee blew out a candle in the office, said physician John Verstraete. 
 
 Just before 6 p.m., a member of the gas company showed up at the physicians office and said: I recommend that you evacuate. 
 
 Roughly two minutes later, everything exploded. 
 
 We feel very blessed, said Cisco Sherman, an office manager with the physicians group. He was huddled in a van with several co-workers, waiting to be allowed back in the building to get their belongings. 
 
 The impact was felt blocks away. 
 
 I thought something had exploded in my house, said Peggy Zilm, who lives about seven blocks from the fire, in the Westwood neighborhood. 
 
 Its horrible, said Zilm, who said smoke was pouring over her street. It just brings back too many memories of the Hyatt and other things. 
 
 About a dozen people forced to evacuate their apartments took advantage of free lodging at the Q hotel in Westport. One of them, Daniel Welch, estimated 200 people may have been prevented from returning to their homes by yellow police tape. 
 
 Street closings today will include Belleview from 47th Street to Ward Parkway and Roanoke from Ward Parkway to 47th Street. Commuters are asked to avoid the area. ||||| Five people -- including a 4-month-old boy -- died in Allentown's massive gas explosion and fire, authorities confirmed at a Thursday afternoon news conference.And later Thursday, fire officials reported they found the fifth of the bodies in the rubble at 13th and Allen streets. Lehigh County Coroner Scott Grim declined to identify the first four bodies recovered, describing them only as a 79-year-old man, a 69-year-old woman, a 16-year-old girl and a 4-month-old baby.The fifth body was found between 5 and 5:30 p.m. Thursday. It is believed to be that of Beatrice Hall, 74, of 544 N. 13th St., who was with her husband, William, 79, at 10:45 p.m. Wednesday when their house exploded and burned, city Fire Marshal Matthew Bainbridge said."Everybody's been accounted for that we were aware of," Bainbridge said Thursday night. "Cadaver dogs found the remains. The big thing here was finding Beatrice [Hall]. That was the only person we could not account for."Family members and friends earlier confirmed the dead as: the Halls and their neighbors Ofelia Ben, 69, Catherine Cruz, 16, and Matthew Manuel Cruz, 4 months, of 542 N. 13th St.About a dozen people were injured and more than 350 were forced to evacuate from surrounding blocks and the Gross Towers seniors apartment complex when an apparent gas leak ignited at 544 N. 13th St.“I would like to extend our deepest sympathies to those who lost loved ones," Mayor Ed Pawlowski said at the afternoon news conference, adding that the city and social service agencies are ready to help "day and night."The mayor said two properties were leveled by the blast and six more have to be razed, and a total of 47 properties, including 10 businesses, were damaged.The mayor said what the victims need most "is dollars," and urged those who want to help to call the American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley.About 70 people were likely to be displaced long-term. All residents of Gross Towers have returned to their homes.At a news conference Thursday morning, Allentown fire Chief Robert Scheirer said no reports of gas odors preceded the explosion. UGI officials said they are still investigating, but said a crew earlier in the week detected no leaks in the area during a routine inspection.“I think we are going under the assumption that it is a gas explosion, but it has not been confirmed to be the case,” Joseph Swope, a company spokesman said earlier.Swope said the 12-inch low pressure main involved in the incident had no leak history.The utility used foam to seal the gas main on both ends of a one-block area at about 3:45 a.m. Thursday. Swope said it took crews some time to cut through reinforced concrete underneath the pavement.Stunned neighbors groped for words to describe the explosion, which could be heard for miles.Antonio Arroyo, who lost his house at 530 N. 13th St. to the ensuing fire, said he was sure a bomb had gone off.“I thought it was bringing the war to our doorsteps,” said Arroyo, who was checking his e-mail when the force of the explosion blasted his computer into him and knocked him to the floor. All the windows in his home blew out and his front door was pushed in.Arroyo sobbed Thursday morning and hugged his wife, Jill, as he described watching for hours as the flames consumed his house. He didn’t want to leave until the fire was out.
– A Massachusetts woman apparently botched some home repairs yesterday and blew her house to smithereens, WBT reports. Lucky for Laurie Beliveau, 52, she fled her property in Taunton, Mass., minutes before the explosion. "We, my son and I, got her a pair of sandals and a glass of water and within about five minutes the house was in flames and the windows exploded," says Paul Saltalamacchia, a neighbor who saw her crying for help. Seems that Beliveau was trying to fix her hot water heater—which was gas-fueled—when she took off the gas shut-off valve, according to fire officials. That allowed gas to leak into the basement and somehow get ignited. "Everything caved in," says Taunton Deputy Fire Chief Scott Dexter. "It's just a pile of lumber. Nothing is salvageable." According to Saltalmacchia and police, Beliveau was at home in her bedroom when an initial explosion rocked the house and blew off her closet door, the Taunton Gazette reports. "She was walking up the street screaming 'Help me, help me! My house exploded!'" Saltalmacchia says. Another neighbor says Beliveau was once married but lived alone for years, barely communicating with others and living in apparently unsanitary conditions with dogs and cats. A "rotting-vegetable-type odor" could be smelled out back even after the explosion, the Gazette reports. "She should not have been here by herself," says the neighbor. "It doesn’t make sense."