Huge explosion rips through Houston building, heard for miles around

[January 24, 2020]    HOUSTON (Reuters) - A massive explosion ripped through a building in Houston, Texas early on Friday, shattering windows in the vicinity and heard by residents across a wide area, police and media said.

Smoke and flames could be seen billowing from the area around the blast and emergency vehicles converged on the area.

The explosion took place in Gessner Road, in the northwest of the city, Houston police said in a Twitter post. They advised traffic to stay away from the area but did not give any word on any injuries.

ABC's local affiliate KTRK said residents had reported broken windows and doors from the blast and said at least one person had been seen with injuries.

It said the blast appeared to have originated at Watson Grinding and Manufacturing, a machining and manufacturing company.

The company did not respond to a phone call.

The blast occurred at around 4:25 a.m. (1025 GMT).

Mike Iscovitz, a meteorologist with the local Fox News channel said the huge blast had shown up on local weather radar and was felt more than 20 miles (32 km) away.

"Radar clearly shows this brief FLASH of reflectivity from NW Houston," he tweeted.

(Reporting by Bhargav Acharya in Bengaluru; Writing by Frances Kerry; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

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