Gas explosion forces evacuation of Detroit suburb

Suburban streets in the US city of Detroit were evacuated after an allegedly drunk driver crashed into a natural gas line.

The explosion happened at 3am (local time) on Saturday morning when the driver rammed his car through a fence at a DTE Energy training facility and then struck the natural gas line.

Flames from the blast could be seen up to 60 kilometres away and the heat could be felt nearby.

"We left on our own because we could feel the heat - all we needed was a marshmallow," one nearby resident told WDIV.

"It was huge - a fireball," another nearby resident said.

Fire crews were on the scene within 10 minutes and managed to turn the pipeline off.

Two buildings inside the facility caught fire.

There were no reports of injuries from inside the DTE Energy complex.

Melvindale police officers were assisting senior citizens during the evacuation and taking them to one of three evacuation shelters.

The 24-year-old vehicle driver was not initially able to exit his vehicle after the crash.

He was taken to a nearby hospital and is in a stable condition.

Police believe alcohol was a factor in the crash.