Customer doing laundry injured in gas explosion at laundromat, Florida lawsuit says

Customers were going about their business doing laundry at a Florida laundromat when a “massive” fiery explosion ripped the building apart, and the smell of gas filled the air, authorities said.

Now, one of four people injured in the July explosion is suing the business owner and property manager in Marion County, saying they were negligent in allowing natural gas to build up prior to the explosion and fire.

McClatchy News reached out April 1 to the parties named in the lawsuit and did not immediately receive a response.

The evening of July 30, 2024, multiple people called 911 to report an explosion and the scent of gas originating from Classic Laundromat, according to reports from Ocala Fire Rescue.

Video taken from across the street shows a fireball erupt from the strip mall, sending debris flying as the front of the building and part of the roof blew out.

First responders said they worked to get the gas leak under control before they entered and put out the fire.

The man who filed the lawsuit said he was knocked to the ground and seriously injured. He’s accusing the laundromat owner and property manager of failing to maintain the building ahead of the explosion.

He’s seeking damages in excess of $50,000.

State Fire Marshals investigated but couldn’t make a final determination on the cause of the explosion, according to WCJB. Investigators did mention “the bulk of the fire was located near the southeast corner of the structure near an exposed gas line,” the Ocala StarBanner reported.

“I cannot rule out the electrical components of the dryers or the electrical outlet near the dryers,” an investigator wrote in the report obtained by the Ocala StarBanner. “I also cannot make an accurate determination on how the gas line came apart. Was it due to the supports giving way by the possible age of the material or the explosion itself?”

The March 7 lawsuit filed by the injured man is the second lawsuit stemming from the explosion.

Another business in the strip mall, a health insurance company that was “destroyed in the explosion,” sued their shared landlord and the laundromat owner, saying the parties failed to properly inspect the property and fix any issues that would contribute to a gas leak.

Marion County records show the parties involved in that case have filed proposals to settle.

Ocala is about an 80-mile drive northwest from Orlando.

This story was originally published April 1, 2025 at 1:01 PM with the headline "Customer doing laundry injured in gas explosion at laundromat, Florida lawsuit says."