76-year-old woman killed in Anne Arundel house explosion, authorities say

The Anne Arundel County Fire Marshal’s Office identified the woman killed Wednesday afternoon in a house explosion in the Cape St. Claire neighborhood that left two other people injured, according to a statement by the agency.

Linda Synowczynski, 76, was declared dead by emergency medical personnel who responded to calls about the explosion in the 1100 block of Green Holly Drive at 12:15 p.m. Aug. 19. Crews arrived to discover a collapsed home and Synowczynski suffering from cardiac arrest.

She died at the scene. A man rescued from the house was transported by helicopter to the burn unit at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, where he remains in critical condition. A police officer also suffered minor injuries.

Investigators believe a gas company was at the home about an hour before the explosion to fill Synowczynski’s propane tank. They reached out to the company to seek more information.

Authorities have allowed families in the surrounding area to reenter their houses, though a portion of Green Holly Drive remain closed. There is no active threat to the community at this time, the statement said.

A neighbor, Deborah Banks, said she occasionally saw Synowczynski’s husband, Stanley, helping her walk around their yard. Banks described Synowczynski as an avid jewelry maker who enjoyed working with beads in her home.

“Everybody liked Stan and his wife,” she said. “The neighborhood’s been very blessed to have them.”