Dozens of firefighters responded to the scene of a fire at St. Patrick’s Parish Center in O’Neill on Monday morning after an explosion shortly before 6 a.m.

At 5:55 a.m., the O’Neill Fire Department was called to an explosion at the parish center, said Terry Miles, the department’s chief information officer. The building, located in the 300 block of Benton Street, is between St. Mary’s High School and Avera St. Anthony’s Hospital.

Upon arrival, the parish center was found completely engulfed in flames, Miles said. A large amount of debris was scattered in the area, some of which flew almost half a block away.

Windows in houses across the street blew out and one house shifted slightly off its foundation.

Some homes near the parish center were evacuated, but Miles said at 10:30 a.m. Monday that the 10 to 15 residents who had been evacuated have since been allowed to return home.

At the hospital, the doors of the emergency room were blown away and the garage door of the ambulance was severely damaged. There were also fixtures and cracks in the ceiling in the hospital’s new addition.

The hospital will be closed on Monday and all emergency calls will be diverted to West Holt Medical Services in Atkinson.

Nearby St. Mary’s primary and secondary schools also suffered internal damage, with cracks in walls and ceilings. Like the hospital, the schools were closed on Monday.

The extent of the damage caused by the explosion will be determined once the fire brigade has assessed each of the affected structures, but the parish center is considered a total loss.

When Miles was asked for a preliminary estimate of the financial damage, he said, “Millions – no doubt.”

Miles said no one was injured. A minimal number of patients, including two receiving dialysis treatment, were in hospital at the time and are safe, he said.

Avera St. Anthony’s Hospital has established a modified emergency room at the O’Neill Community Center. Anyone who needs non-emergency medical attention can go to the community center.

All appointments at Avera St. Anthony’s and Avera Medical Group on Monday were canceled, as were physical therapy sessions.

The O’Neill Fire Department, which was assisted by firefighters from Atkinson and Chambers, brought the fire under control around 8:30 a.m., Miles said. The fire brigade remained on site until the afternoon hours on Monday.

Officials from the Nebraska State Fire Marshal’s Office and the Nebraska State Patrol responded to the scene to investigate. Miles said a gas leak is believed to be the cause of the explosion.

Oxygen tanks west of the parish center were damaged and leaking fluid, but the tanks were not the cause of the explosion itself, Miles said.