OCONOMOWOC, Wis.  --  An explosion in the downtown Oconomowoc demolished a church and damaged two nearby homes Wednesday. The explosion happened at First Baptist Church.

One person was being brought to Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital by Flight For Life, hospital spokeswoman Carolyn Bellin said.

See photos from the scene of the Oconomowoc church explosion (MyFoxMilwaukee)

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Waukesha County Board Supervisor Kenneth Herro works a block away as a real estate agent and said he heard an explosion about 1:30 p.m. He and other workers walked right over.

"The church basically had disappeared and the only thing remaining was the steeple in the front," Herro said.

He smelled natural gas and ambulances were pulling away as he arrived, he said. One house on each side of the church was on fire, he said.

The explosion shook the downtown area, Herro said.

"We have really large windows, all the windows just kind of bowed out," he said.

The church is in a residential area, with Lake Lac La Belle beach across the street, Herro said.

We Energies spokesman Rick James confirmed the explosion and said the company had sent workers to the scene. He did not know whether it was a natural gas explosion or have other details yet, he said.

The explosion was believed to have been caused when a service line was hit.

City Clerk Diane Coenen said there is road construction near the church, but didn't know whether there was a gas leak.

"There was flying debris from the building that exploded," she said. "I don't know if there are injuries or to what extent."

Emergency workers were evacuating nearby homes and businesses to a nearby school, Coenen said.