I based the “flammable gas in the cooling tower” idea on the reports of a very large report and house-shaking pressure wave out to a distance of miles from the site.
I don’t see how a turbine explosion could release that kind of pressure wave.
Even a flat-out boiler explosion would dissipate much of it’s energy against the walls of the plant.
But flammable gas inside the volume of one of those cooling towers could really release a hell of a pressure wave.
Be a cool thing to try, anyway. I mean, if anyone’s got a spare hyperbolic cooling tower laying around.
GA Pwr reported they were in the process of shutting down for maintenance when the event occurred.