Bear River house explosion sends 3 to hospital

A mother and her two children are in hospital in Halifax after an explosion Tuesday night at their home in Bear River, N.S.

The explosion inside the home on Upper River Road happened around 7 p.m.

"They were using an outdoor cooking appliance inside the house," said Bear River Fire Chief David McCormick.

McCormick said the explosion was powerful but the fire only lasted seconds.

"It blew the windows and doors right out of the house and caused a flash fire in the house which was extinguished."

McCormicck said the homeowner used an extinguisher to quickly put out a fire on the floor of the home. The explosion blew a door off the house and one of the windows was blown into a nearby river.

"It was quite an explosion, I mean it blew out three windows, sashes and everything, right out of the windows."

McCormick said a woman and her two children remain in hospital recovering from first- and second-degree burns.