GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Neighbors living near Twisters Ice Cream say they were awakened by a loud boom early Monday morning after an apparent explosion destroyed the longtime Grand Rapids business.
The Grand Rapids Fire Department says crews were called to the intersection of Fulton Street and Lane Avenue around 1 a.m. Monday after a neighbor reported the building was on fire. Firefighters arrived within two minutes but found the structure was already a catastrophic loss.
WATCH: 'Just a huge boom': Grand Rapids neighbors describe fire that destroyed Twisters Ice Cream
Neighbor Kathrine Force, who lives about six blocks away, said she heard the explosion from her home.
"Just a huge boom," Force said. "I thought somebody hit a car or something on our road. I walked out and didn't see anything, so I just went back to bed."
She didn't realize what had happened until her husband woke her up.
"My husband woke me up and was like, 'Twisters blew up.' I was like, 'What?'"
Radio traffic from emergency responders described the severity of the scene as firefighters arrived.
"We have a complete collapsing structure. Fire in the middle of it. We've got a line stretched. Truck 3 is going in the air," one first responder said per Broadcastify.
The building was vacant at the time of the fire, and no injuries were reported. As investigators work to determine exactly what happened, Grand Rapids Fire Marshal Bill Smith says early reports point to an explosion.
"Based on the reports, it sounded like we had an explosion that occurred at that location," Smith said.
Smith explained they’re not ruling anything out as they investigate.
“We can’t rule out a gas moment in an explosion so what we’re taking a look at is where did it come from,” Smith said,
Twisters owner Greg Finzel said police notified him shortly after the fire began.
"Police called me last night at like 1:15 a.m., I was down here by 1:30 a.m.," Finzel said. "Six of my employees were here, and some of them live in the area and got woken up by the blast.”
Although the business was destroyed, Finzel said he was most grateful everyone made it out safely.
"They're all good, yes, thank God. That's the only thing that really matters,” Finzel said.
For many neighbors, the loss extends beyond the building itself.
"It's sad. Everybody sees this place driving by, and now it's just a bunch of cups in the road," Force said.
She says Twisters was a neighborhood favorite for her family.
"My husband and my sons go often, and my 18-year-old is not awake yet. He's going to be really sad because that's his favorite place."
The cause of the explosion remains under investigation.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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