An explosion linked to a vehicle sent debris and shattered glass into the streets, and has injured three people.
NASHVILLE — An explosion rocked downtown Nashville on Christmas morning, sending smoke rising high above the city, blowing out store windows and forcing evacuations. The authorities said they believed the explosion was an “intentional” act.
No one was killed, but three people were injured and taken to hospitals, officials said at a news conference on Friday.
The authorities said the explosion happened about 6:30 a.m. outside 166 2nd Ave N in downtown Nashville in an area often packed with tourists, with honky-tonks, restaurants, music venues and boot stores, but which was quiet on a holiday morning. The explosion was “linked to a vehicle,” an R.V., investigators said, and it was unclear if a person was inside of it.
A senior federal law enforcement official said the F.B.I. was investigating the matter and working with local authorities. “Acting Attorney General Jeff Rosen was briefed on the incident early this morning and directed that all DOJ resources be made available to assist in the investigation,” a Justice Department spokesman said in a statement. Mr. Rosen became the acting attorney general on Wednesday after William P. Barr stepped down. The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said that it was joining the investigation and Chad F. Wolf, the acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, has been briefed.
Police responded to reports of gunshots just around 5:30 a.m., and encountered what they believed was a suspicious vehicle, according to Don Aaron, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Officers called in a hazardous devices unit, or bomb squad, which was en route when the vehicle exploded. They had also been knocking on the doors of nearby apartments on Second Avenue to evacuate residents before the explosion.
Mayor John Cooper said at a news conference that the area looked like a “bomb went off.” “Don’t come to downtown Nashville. It’s going to be sealed off,” Mr. Cooper said, adding that had the explosion taken place on a weekday morning, the outcome could have been far different.
The explosion tore through the heart of an area that has been one of Nashville’s biggest tourist draws, packed with honky-tonks, restaurants, music venues and boot stores. On Second Avenue, just a block away from the Cumberland River, the blast left the roadway blackened with debris, including scorched trees and the hulls of vehicles destroyed by the explosion. The authorities have cordoned off a large section of the city’s downtown, which is packed with law enforcement officials but is relatively quiet.
Lawrence Cosson was sleeping on the street outside one of the downtown bars when he felt the explosion. He said the ground shook and he could hear alarms sounding in nearby buildings. When a police officer guided him away from the area, he said, “I saw there was so much debris coming from the other side of the building.”
Some have already drawn comparisons to the deadly tornado that swept through a swath of Nashville in March. Rows of mangled buildings still line streets in some parts of the city.
Tom Cirillo, who lives downtown, said the blast on Friday reminded him of the tornado; the explosion was louder, he said. He was troubled by the blast, he said, but was also grateful that it occurred at a time when an area that is often bustling was quiet and cleared of crowds.
“It’s just sort of a terrible thing that it happened on a Christmas morning,” Mr. Cirillo said. “You’re lucky that it happened at the time that it did. I’m just wondering what exactly happened.”
Mr. Cooper, the mayor, said that he had toured the damaged area, and reported seeing broken glass, downed trees and water main breaks.
“It’s not a very populated area, but the people in the buildings adjacent mostly are fine and have been evacuated,” he said. “One more event in Nashville’s 2020.”
Gov. Bill Lee of Tennessee said in a statement on Twitter that the state would supply any needed resources to determine what had happened and who was responsible.
He said he was “praying for those who were injured” and was thankful to the emergency workers.
“President Trump has been briefed on the explosion in Nashville, Tennessee, and will continue to receive regular updates,” Judd Deere, a spokesman for the president, said. “The President is grateful for the incredible first responders and praying for those who were injured.”
WeGo Public Transit, the city’s bus system that serves the greater Nashville area, said service was not disrupted but buses were helping the authorities to clear the area and get individuals out of the cold.
Hours after the explosion, several fire trucks were gathered at the edge of downtown and blue lights flashed under the Hard Rock Cafe’s large spinning guitar on Broadway. Except for a distant fire alarm and the sounds of a helicopter, downtown was quiet.
The Rev. Jayd Neely, the pastor at St. Mary of the Seven Sorrow’s Catholic Church located a few blocks from the explosion, was finishing his morning prayers when he heard the explosion. At first he considered the possibility it was construction, but knew that was unlikely on Christmas morning.
That it could be an intentional act is troubling, he said. Now only a handful of parishioners can attend services scheduled for noon and musicians are unable to come because of road closures, so there will be no music. “It’s really evil,” Father Neely said, “especially on Christmas Day.”
Freddie O’Connell, a Nashville council member for the area affected by the explosion, said, “2020 already had plenty of devastation.”
“It’s hard to wake up on Christmas morning and see more of it in my hometown,” he said.
Jamie McGee reported from Nashville; Lucy Tompkins from Bozeman, Mont.; Derrick Bryson Taylor from London; Michael S. Schmidt from Conn.; and Hamilton Matthew Masters from Nashville.
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