Explosion destroys coffee shop, injures 3 in rural Georgia

Coffee shop explodes.

HOMERVILLE, Ga. — Authorities say an explosion destroyed a coffee shop and injured three workers in a rural south Georgia city.

Glenn Allen, a spokesman for Georgia Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner Ralph Hudgens, said investigators do not suspect foul play in the blast that rocked the tiny city of Homerville at about 12:15 p.m. Friday. Allen said investigators are looking at whether a construction crew digging in the area might have triggered a natural gas explosion.

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On the city's Facebook page, Homerville officials asked residents to avoid the downtown area.

Allen says: "The building is destroyed." Only three employees were inside. Allen said they were airlifted to a hospital in Gainesville, Florida. Their conditions were not immediately known.

Homerville has about 2,500 residents living roughly 30 miles (48 kilometers) from the Georgia-Florida line.