Pennsylvania
Nursing assistant one of two killed in deadly Pennsylvania blast
An explosion at the Bristol Health & Rehab Center outside Philadelphia killed at least two people, including nursing assistant Muthoni Nduthu.
Pennsylvania nursing home explosion causes damage
An explosion at Silver Lake Healthcare Center in Bristol, PA, left the building in ruins and at least two people dead.
BUCKS COUNTY, PA ‒ A day after multiple explosions at a Pennsylvania nursing home killed two people and injured 20 others, authorities surveyed the extensive damage and began identifying the victims.
Muthoni Nduthu, 52, was named by the Bucks County Coroner’s Office as one of the two people found dead inside the Silver Lake Nursing Home, also known as the Bristol Health & Rehab Center, after a pair of explosions partially collapsed the facility on Dec. 23.
Nduthu, a nursing assistant at the facility, was a mother of three who was featured in news stories over a decade ago when she bought her home through the local branch of Habitat for Humanity. Clinton Ndegwa, one of Nduthu’s sons, declined to comment when reached by phone, reported the Bucks County Courier Times, part of the USA TODAY Network.
The deadly incident began around 2:20 p.m., when the first blast trapped dozens of residents inside the two-story building and triggered an intense search-and-rescue effort. Firefighters arrived on the scene and pulled frightened residents from windows, stairwells and elevator shafts as the building erupted into flames.
After first responders rescued two people from the building’s collapsed basement, a second explosion rocked the facility, producing another ball of fire and spewing more smoke into the air, said Bristol Township Fire Marshal Kevin Dippolito.
Two people, including Nduthu and a resident who has not yet been publicly identified, died from their injuries. At least 20 others were injured and over 100 residents have been displaced. The facility has more than 170 beds, though it’s not clear how many residents and staff were in the building at the time of the explosions.
Search teams ceased their operations hours after the explosion, after all residents and employees were accounted for. The next day, officials seemed to still be surveying the scope of the damage as members of various government agencies, including the National Transportation Safety Board, walked through the scene and snapped photos.
Nursing home explosion aftermath: A view from above
Here’s a drone view of aftermath of the fatal explosion at the Silver Lake Nursing Home in Bristol on Dec. 23, 2025
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said authorities believe a gas leak led to the “catastrophic” blast. Crews for PECO, the local energy company, were responding to reports of a gas odor at the nursing home just before the first explosion was reported.
“PECO crews shut off natural gas and electric service to the facility to ensure the safety of first responders and local residents,” the company said in a statement. “It is not known at this time if PECO’s equipment, or natural gas, was involved in this incident.”
An investigation into the cause of the blasts remains underway.
Shapiro and other officials described a heroic rescue effort that saw first responders hoist residents over their shoulders and carry them away from the burning building.
“In the immediate moments after the explosion, you saw what real heroism is all about,” Shapiro said. “Firefighters rushed to this scene in order to contain the explosion, in order to put out the fire, and most importantly, in order to rescue people.”
Residents who live near the facility said they could feel the explosions from inside their homes.
Joe Westergon, who lives a few blocks from the facility, told the Bucks County Courier Times that he helped carry six injured residents to safety.
“I was taking them over to the curb and sitting them down,” Westergon said. “I was trying to keep them as calm as possible … They’ll live, but they were pretty tore up, some were bleeding.”
Christopher Cann reports for USA TODAY. Chris Ullery and Jo Ciavaglia report for the Bucks County Courier Times.
Contributing: Thao Nguyen, Amanda Lee Myers and Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY; Lacey Latch, JD Mullane, Jess Rohan, and Michele Haddon, Bucks County Courier Times.
(This story has been updated to add new information.)
Tomorrow’s front looks weaker with just a few showers early in the morning…
EVENING: Increasing clouds, summer-like. Temps near 80.
TONIGHT: Mostly cloudy and warm. Low 68.
THURSDAY: Scattered showers between 6-10am. Clearing, windy and warm for the afternoon. High 88.
Wednesday felt a little more like summer as temperatures reach 85 degrees. The humidity still remains tolerable this evening as clouds increase from an approaching front.
The cold front arrives Thursday morning, leading to a broken line of scattered showers between 6-10am. Once the front clears, gusty winds between 20-30mph will develops with afternoon temperatures near 88 degrees. A little unusual for a post cold front!
The upcoming weekend will be dry with low humidity and lots of sunshine. It should be a great weekend to spend with Dad! We’ll keep you posted, but the next chance for rain will be another front next Monday.
– Meteorologist Eric Finkenbinder
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A bipartisan package of bills would eliminate certain online gambling deposit methods, limit promotions, and strengthen protections for self-excluded gamblers.
Pennsylvania iGaming operators pulled in a record $2.78 billion in revenue last year, but some lawmakers want more responsible gaming consumer protections. State Reps. Tarik Khan (D-Phila) and Jamie Flick (R-Lycoming/Union) have introduced bipartisan legislation to provide better safeguards for PA online gamblers. Their series of bills seeks to add more protections, such as reduced deposit periods and limits on iGaming marketing.
Restrictions on push notifications, text marketing, credit cards & more
Dubbed Protecting Public Health in Online Gambling, Flick’s and Khan’s legislation breaks down into the following three parts:
- Pennsylvania Online Consumer Protection Act – Would establish “reasonable limits” on the frequency of deposits into online gambling accounts. It would also limit text message solicitations and push notifications involving sportsbook and casino bonus codes, while protecting against youth-targeted gambling ads and expanding responsible gaming programs.
- Prohibiting Funding of Online Gambling – Seeks to prohibit credits from being used to fund accounts at PA online casinos, sportsbooks, and poker sites.
- Strengthening Self-Exclusion Protections – Would ban online gambling operators from sending promotions, advertisements, or bonuses (e.g., free spins) to gamblers who’ve self-excluded from Pennsylvania’s gambling market.
Protecting young people and problem gamblers
Khan, who’s been a certified nurse practitioner since 2011, views Pennsylvania’s growing online gambling habit as a potential health challenge.
“As a nurse practitioner, I believe we should address problem gambling the same way we address other public health challenges: with prevention, education, treatment and commonsense safeguards,” Khan stated via his website.
“Our bipartisan bill package will help protect young people, individuals and families while supporting responsible gaming.”
Flick is primarily concerned with the number of young Pennsylvanians who are being exposed to ads involving sports betting, poker, and online casino games for real money.
“Too many young people are being exposed to online gambling through constant advertising and unprecedented access from their phones and devices,” said Flick. “These bills are about putting reasonable safeguards in place, promoting responsible gaming and helping ensure that young people and families are protected from gambling-related harm.”
New Pennsylvania online casino revenue record
The amount of revenue that Pennsylvania gambling sites are raking in continues to increase year after year. The $2.78 billion iGaming revenue figure from 2025 was up 27.22% from the previous year, when PA online casinos netted $2.18 billion.
While the Keystone State doesn’t break its iGaming revenue numbers down by game type, we can reasonably assume that the bulk of it comes from real money online slots.
Sports betting also experienced a record year, hitting $602.5 million, up 17.97% from 2025. The vast majority of this amount came via online sports gambling.
While this revenue increase is good for some of the best online casinos and sportsbooks in the state, it can also spell potential underlying problems. Khan and Flick are seeking to reduce some issues through their bills.
Responsible gambling
Bettors must be 21 years or older and otherwise eligible to register and place wagers at online casinos. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, please seek assistance from trained professionals such as the Problem Gambling Help Network at 1-800-MY-RESET.
The state House passed a bill on Tuesday that would make “gas station heroin” illegal in Pennsylvania. Officials say it is a dangerous and highly addictive substance popping up across the country.
Tianeptine is a highly addictive opioid-like drug not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA says the substance has been linked to hundreds of overdoses and deaths, including one overdose death in Fayette County in April.
“Although it’s not approved by the FDA for any medical use, it’s being sold in stores and online, putting Pennsylvanians at risk,” said state Rep. Charity Grimm Krupa on the House floor before the vote.
House Bill 377 would prohibit the manufacture, delivery, or possession of the drug with intent to manufacture or deliver. The bill would make it a felony with up to five years in prison or a fine of up to $15,000.
In April, the Fayette County coroner reported Fayette County’s first accidental overdose death due to tianeptine.
“In his public statement, he warned that this highly addictive substance can cause severe withdrawal symptoms, respiratory depression, seizures and death. He urged lawmakers to act before this problem grows into an epidemic,” Rep. Krupa said.
Rep. Krupa is a co-sponsor of the bill. She spoke on the House floor, urging all members to vote for it.
“Members, this is not a partisan issue. Protecting our communities and saving lives should unite us all,” Rep. Krupa said.
Two Democratic representatives serving Allegheny County, including Rep. Emily Kinkead, were the only ones to vote against the bill. She said she thinks prohibiting tianeptine from being sold or distributed will help, but she thinks criminalizing people for possessing it does not help.
“The Drug Control Act is very much a sledgehammer and not a chisel, and we know that criminalizing substance use disorder is not effective in actually treating it,” Kinkead said. “And the Drug Control Act, the mere possession of a controlled substance that’s covered under the act is a felony, and it’s up to five years in prison. And we know that does not work to address drug issues in our communities.”
She hopes that lawmakers can tackle controlled substances with a more nuanced approach.
“We need to go back to the mere possession portion of the Drug Control Act and actually lighten that sentence and address that piece of it so that we can be treating substance use disorder the way that it should be treated, which is a health problem and not a criminal problem,” said Kinkead.
The bill now heads to the state Senate.
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