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Gas Explosion at Bronx School Leaves 3 Workers Hurt, Officials Say

By  Janon Fisher Murray Weiss and Ben Fractenberg | August 20, 2015 9:34pm | Updated on August 20, 2015 10:10pm

 An explosion damaged three floors inside John F. Kennedy High School in Marble Hill Thursday night, Aug. 20, 2015. 
John F. Kennedy High School Explosion
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BRONX — Three workers building a new science lab at Marble Hill's John F. Kennedy High School were hurt — one seriously — in a gas explosion Thursday night, according to officials.

The blast occurred a little after 8 p.m., destroying parts of the fourth, fifth and sixth floors of the building, sources said. The explosion was sparked when one of the workers lit a match to check that gas was going through the line, the mayor said.

The sixth floor and severely damaged three classrooms at the high school, located  located at 99 Terrace View Ave., according to sources and the FDNY. 

"Very troubling evening for residents here in Marble Hill — they felt a blast, they felt a building shake," Mayor Bill de Blasio said during a press conference outside the building Thursday night.

"And what we see here at JFK High is a really shocking scene of the sixth floor having experienced a tremendous explosion."

Seven workers from Positive Electrical Associates of Long Island City were involved in the incident, sources said. Three were taken to area hospitals with serious burn injuries, the FDNY spokesman said.

All of the workers were taken to Jacobi Hospital, the spokesman said.

Oscar Jimenez, 40, was working at Tibbett Diner nearby when the blast happened. 

"I just heard an explosion. The restaurant was shaking for a second or two," Jimenez said. "It was scary. It just sounded like thunder coming from next door."

There are eight schools in the building and more than 4,000 students attend classes at the school. 

De Blasio told 1010 WINS Friday afternoon that the school woul not be open in time for the beginning of the school year, but that each and every student would be placed in a nearby school. 

New York State Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz told DNAinfo New York that the New Visions Charter High School for Advanced Math and Science and New Visions Charter High School for Advanced Humanities would need to be placed in a new building. 

"They’re going to be relocated, and it’s possible that some if not all of the schools could be relocated once the school year starts," Dinowitz said. "They’re not going to let anybody in the building unless they decide that it’s safe."

Five rooms on the 7th floor of the building were also structurally damaged, Dinowitz added, and large pieces of the exterior wall on 5th, 6th and 7th floors were either damaged or destroyed. 

Wanda Ramos, 45, who works in the building, said they have been working on the labs for about two years. 

"It's heart breaking," said Ramos, whose 14-year-old daughter is set to start her sophomore at the school. "You know how long they worked for this? They're brand new."

Ravi Shenoy with Shenoy Engineering applied in May to provide gas connections from the basement to the 6th floor science lab, according to Department of Buildings records

Shenoy Engineering did not return a request for comment. 

There was no answer after repeated calls to Positive Electrical Associates, which is based in Long Island City. 

"I can say this is a contractor that School Construction worked with a lot in the past and had a good reputation," de Blasio said.

Additional reporting by Eddie Small, Trevor Kapp.