'When I say it blew up, it blew up:' Neighbors describe explosion that rocked Hillcrest neighborhood

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Developing tonight -- neighbors describe a blast of heat from an explosion at a scrap metal yard in the Hillcrest area.

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Earlier this afternoon, fire crews responded to flames on Plymouth St, when an explosion rocked an entire neighborhood.

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One neighbor says it felt like a heatwave when something inside the garage exploded.

“When I say it blew up, it blew up,” a neighbor who wanted to remain anonymous said. “It wasn’t no fireworks, it blew up.”

He lives in the apartment complex across from Scott Motors LLC where a garage went up in flames. It’s a scrap metal yard for cars. Now, that garage is burnt to a crisp – charred and falling apart.

“First thing I thought of was that it was fireworks at first because there were like small pops here and there,” the neighbor said. “But that particular boom, it shook the entire apartment.”

ORIGINAL STORY: Fire, garage explosion in Hillcrest neighborhood on Jacksonville’s Westside

Officers on scene were directing people away from the area.

“As we going back, not even like 10 seconds, boom – you can feel the heat, the heatwave,” the neighbor said. “People were checking their eyebrows or their facial hairs or whatever – that’s how hot it was.”

People were scrambling and running away from the black plumes of smoke that kept growing larger.

In one video, you can hear someone saying frantically, “Let’s get out of here.”

READ: Residents displaced; apartment complex building condemned after retaining wall gives way

“Everybody started running outside because this apartment is gas,” the neighbor said.

A Jacksonville Fire Rescue spokesperson said about 15 units responded to the fire.

Crews used ladders to get over the fire and put out the flames.

And neighbors said the fire was under control within 15 minutes.

JFRD says no one was hurt.

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Employees on property said they can’t explain what happened, but that the state Fire Marshal is investigating.

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