Explosion and fire at Dallas residential building kills at least 3
Child among the victims at the two-storey complex following a suspected gas leak
An explosion and massive fire at a Dallas residential building Thursday killed a child and at least two other people following a blast that shook nearby homes and happened while firefighters were rushing to a reported gas leak, officials said.
At least five people also went to hospitals with injuries, Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesperson Jason Evans said. It was unclear how many residents lived in the two-storey complex in the Oak Cliff neighbourhood south of downtown Dallas, where a towering plume of black smoke was visible for kilometres.
Evans did not rule out that more victims could be found as crews continued to sift through the charred remains of the building. By late Thursday, Evans said firefighters had searched less than half of the scene by hand and that some areas would require excavation.
“This was enormous,” Evans said of the fire.
Atmos Energy, a natural gas provider, said in a statement they were told by fire officials that a construction crew unrelated to the company had damaged a pipeline near the site of the fire.
Kacee Proctor, a resident of the building, said her mother had smelled gas inside a day earlier, but Proctor did not think much of it at the time.