Ten Duke employees were injured in an explosion Wednesday morning in downtown Durham, which killed one person and injured more than a dozen.
President Vincent Price announced the employee injuries in a statement Wednesday evening.
"Today has been a frightening and sad day for the city of Durham," he wrote. "Our thoughts are with those who were injured—including eight Duke employees—and the family and friends of our fellow citizen who was killed."
An update Thursday afternoon brought the number of Duke employees who were injured in the blast to 10.
After a two-inch gas line was hit near Brightleaf Square shortly after 10:00 a.m., the resulting blast caused a nearby building's partial collapse, initially sending 17 people to area hospitals. On Thursday, officials said the number of injured people had risen to 25.
Since the explosion, 500 Duke employees who work downtown are being relocated, according to a tweet from Working@Duke Wednesday.
A release from Duke earlier in the day said that several employees had been injured due to shattered glass.
Price added that Duke employees were among those responding to the emergency in caring for the injured and assisting in recovery efforts, and expressed gratitude toward professionals and public service workers who served in immediate relief efforts throughout the day.
"The collaboration with our partners in the city and county could not have been stronger throughout the day and will continue as Durham recovers," Price wrote.
This is a developing story that will be updated as new information becomes available.
Editor's note: This article was updated at 11:45 a.m. Thursday with additional information, and it was updated Thursday night with the new total number of Duke employees who were injured following an update from officials.
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