Officials in California say police and firefighters are responding to an explosion that rocked the city of Palm Springs.

The city of Palm Springs said Saturday in a social medial post that the explosion happened at 11 a.m. local time and that residents were being asked to avoid the area around North Indian Canyon Drive near East Tachevah Drive.

Investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are on their way to the scene to help assess what happened, according to spokesperson Nicole Lozano.

Nima Tabrizi, 37, of Santa Monica, said he was inside a cannabis dispensary nearby when he felt a massive explosion.

“The building just shook, and we go outside and there’s massive cloud smoke,” Tabrizi said. “Crazy explosion. It felt like a bomb went off. ... We went up to the scene, and we saw human remains.”

Palm Springs is a tony community in the desert about a two-hour drive west of Los Angeles, known for upscale resorts and a history of celebrity residents.

This story may be updated.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2025/05/17/palm-springs-explosion/