BLOOMINGTON—An explosion Monday afternoon at the Shrine Club building north of Bloomington hospitalized one person and caused extensive structural damage. The facility may be closed for most of 2025.
Monroe Fire Protection District officials said the blast at the brick building on Thompson Ridge Road near Interstate 69 Mile Marker 125 appears accidental. First responders initially received calls reporting a structure fire, but en route, they learned of an explosion that had blown out windows and compromised the building’s structure.
Multiple fire trucks from Monroe County and Ellettsville fire departments and an ambulance responded to the scene. One person present during the explosion suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was transported to a local hospital for treatment.
In a Facebook post, the Shrine Club indicated that a gas leak was the suspected cause of the explosion. Due to the severity of the damage, the organization announced it would temporarily relocate its meetings to the Ellettsville Masonic Lodge No. 245.
“Investigators are still working on the cause and events of the explosion but have primarily ruled the explosion as accidental,” the Monroe Fire Protection District said in a Facebook post.
Thompson Ridge Road, where the facility is located, is a dead-end lane parallel to the west side of I-69 just north of Bloomington.
