Sport Chalet employees hurt in explosion were asked to investigate gas odor

The two Sport Chalet employees who were hurt in an explosion at the sporting goods store Friday were asked to shut off a gas valve after someone reported smelling gas, authorities said.

Two employees, who were not identified, had unspecified injuries, but a sheriff’s department official said they were taken to Huntington Hospital in Pasadena to be treated for burns.

No active fire was started by the explosion, the cause of which remained under investigation.

Los Angeles County Fire spokesman Al Yanagisawa said that someone smelled gas inside the store, so two employees were sent to an electrical closet to shut off a gas main. That’s when explosion occurred, at about 10 a.m., he added.

Yanagisawa said there was minimal damage to the building, which remained closed for the investigation.

-- Tiffany Kelly and Jason Wells, Times Community News

Follow Tiffany Kelly on Google+ and on Twitter: @LATiffanyKelly