A gas explosion leveled the Abundant Life Fellowship church in Boonville, New York, on Tuesday morning, sending Pastor Brandon Pitts and four firefighters to area hospitals with burns and critical injuries. All five men were listed in stable but critical condition.

According to the NY Post, the blast struck shortly before 10:30 a.m. as first responders worked inside the building to address a reported propane leak. Three firefighters and the pastor were in the basement when the furnace kicked in, igniting the gas that had accumulated in the space. The building was demolished in an instant.

A fourth firefighter was on the first floor attempting to ventilate the structure. The explosion threw him against a wall.

What Led to the Blast

According to the church's Facebook page, Pitts and a congregation member had already identified the gas leak and called the propane company before firefighters arrived. They were still inside the building when Boonville firefighters responded to the scene. The decision to enter a structure filled with propane gas, made by both the pastor and the volunteer firefighters, reflected the kind of urgency small communities know well: you don't wait for someone else to handle it.

State police confirmed in a press release the scope of the destruction:

"One firefighter was on the first floor attempting to ventilate the building at the time of the explosion and was thrown against the wall. The church sustained catastrophic damage and is considered destroyed."

Investigators added that there is "no indication of criminal activity at this time." The explosion appears to have been a catastrophic accident, nothing more.

The Men Who Were Inside

The four firefighters hospitalized were Nicholas Amicucci, 43; David Pritchard, 60; Richard Czajka, 71; and Allan Austin. Amicucci, Pritchard, and Czajka were transported to Upstate Hospital. Austin was taken to Wynn Hospital. Pastor Pitts, also 43, was taken to Upstate Hospital alongside the others.

Richard Czajka is 71 years old. He was inside a gas-filled basement on a Tuesday morning because his community needed him there. That detail deserves to sit with you for a moment. Volunteer fire departments across rural America run on men like this, people who long ago aged past any obligation but never stopped showing up.

A post on the church's Facebook page, written by what appears to be a congregation member, offered an update in the hours after the blast:

"They have burns that need medical attention but I think everyone will be just fine physically. The building was nearly fully engulfed in flames and smoke when my husband and I left the scene, maybe 15 minutes after the explosion. Please just pray for peace, especially for Pastor Brandon."

The tone of that post tells you everything about the kind of community Boonville is. No rage. No finger-pointing. A request for prayer.

Small Towns and the Infrastructure They're Left With

Boonville sits in Oneida County, deep in upstate New York. It is the kind of place that Albany forgets exists until something explodes or floods. Southbound traffic on New York State Route 12 was shut down indefinitely following the blast, a reminder that in rural communities, one incident on one road can cut off an entire corridor.

Stories like this rarely hold the national spotlight for long. There is no political villain to assign, no policy debate to fuel the cable news cycle. Just a small church, a propane leak, and five men who walked into a building they didn't walk out of on their own.

But the story matters precisely because of what it reveals about the places and people that keep this country stitched together. Volunteer firefighters in their 60s and 70s. A pastor who didn't evacuate when he smelled gas but instead called the propane company and stayed. A congregation member who drove to the scene, watched the church burn, and then went home and asked for prayers rather than answers.

These are not the communities that dominate American political conversation. They don't march. They don't trend. They show up, and when things go wrong, they walk into the building.

What Comes Next

State police are investigating the cause of the explosion, though the early indications point to a tragic mechanical failure rather than negligence or foul play. The church itself is a total loss. For a small congregation, rebuilding will not be a matter of insurance adjusters and contractors. It will be a matter of community, of whether the people around Abundant Life Fellowship rally the way small towns have always rallied.

If the past is any guide, they will.

Five men are in the hospital. A church is ash. And a town in upstate New York is asking for something Washington almost never offers: peace.