Allentown PA house atomized but people inside survive

An explosion in Allentown, PA on 25 Nov 08 atomized one house, and damaged some adjacent homes. There were at least two oddities:

#1. Even though there was nothing left of the house, the two people who were INSIDE the house at the time of the explosion survived.

#2. The gas company is saying it was NOT a gas explosion.

from AP: Cesar Coto, 52, and Miguel Irizarry, 41, were conscious when they were extricated from the leveled home and taken to a hospital, Fire Chief Robert Scheirer said. The extent of their injuries was not clear.
Scheirer said he felt the blast in his office about a mile away and thought something in his building had blown up.

MyFoxPhilly has pictures of the blast at the 1300 block of St. John Street, showing there is NOTHING left of the house.