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(CNN)Officials believe that a Christmas morning explosion in downtown Nashville was an intentional act, according to a Metro Nashville Police spokesman.

In a brief news conference Friday morning, spokesman Don Aaron said the department's hazardous devices unit was headed downtown in response to a call about a suspicious vehicle when there was a "significant" explosion linked to that vehicle around 6:30 a.m. CT.
"We do believe that the explosion was an intentional act," Aaron said.
Three people have been transported to hospitals form the scene, but none are in critical condition, according to Nashville Fire spokesman Joseph Pleasant.https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/asse...xlarge-169.jpg
The scene of an explosion in downtown Nashville on Christmas morning.
The incident is under investigation by multiple agencies, both local and federal, including the FBI and the ATF, Aaron said. Police and Tennessee Highway Patrol are conducting a shutdown of the area for the investigation. Access from the interstate through the immediate area will be restricted, he said.
Eyewitness Buck McCoy told CNN the explosion took place right in front of his home, causing his windows to be blown in.
"Everything on the street was fire," he said. "There were three cars that were fully engulfed."
https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/asse...xlarge-169.jpgEmergency personnel work at the scene of the explosion.
Police previously tweeted the explosion took place outside 166 2nd Avenue N. downtown.
Earlier, Nashville Mayor John Cooper told CNN he was "aware of an explosion" and was on the way to the scene.
"I do know emergency services are calling in our help, all our specialties, to investigate the cause of the explosion and I'm sure more information will be posted soon," Cooper said.
The mayor added the explosion happened on 2nd Avenue on the edge of the Tennessee city's hospitality and tourist district in an old, historic part of town.

Footage from CNN affiliate WTVF showed smoke rising from a fire on the street, with debris littering the area.McCoy told CNN that when he looked outside trees had fallen and broken glass was everywhere. He saw people filing out of their apartments with their animals. Firefighters told him to get as far away from the area as possible, he said.
"There's just nothing left on Second Avenue," he said.

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FBI director Christopher Wray singled out white supremacists during a Sept. 17 House Homeland Security committee hearing.

Wray’s testimony about white supremacists

During the hearing, Wray testified broadly about the FBI’s investigation of terrorism threats and security issues and answered questions about antifa, Black Lives Matter and white supremacists.

U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., a former CIA analyst, asked Wray to discuss the number of investigations into white supremacist groups versus groups on the left.

Wray replied that the FBI has roughly 1,000 domestic terrorism investigations a year, though it is a "good bit north of a thousand this year."

"Everything from racially-motivated violent extremists to violent anarchist extremists, militia types, sovereign citizens, you name it. Of the domestic terrorism threats, we last year elevated racially-motivated violent extremism to be a national threat priority commensurate with a homegrown violent extremists," Wray testified. "That’s the jihadist-inspired people here and with ISIS."

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