Five people were injured, including a child, after two explosions struck homes several hours apart on the same block in a north San Antonio neighbourhood on the night of April 21, authorities told CBS News.
The first explosion occurred at about 6 p.m. local time, followed by a second blast roughly two hours later, around 8 p.m., San Antonio Fire Chief Valerie Frausto told reporters. Both homes were occupied at the time of the incidents.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) described the explosions as “natural gas-fueled” in a statement posted on social media. The agency has launched an investigation and will examine why no evacuations were ordered before the second explosion. An NTSB team arrived at the scene on Wednesday evening.
Frausto said the second explosion, which took place two doors down from the first, caused similar destruction. “The roof blew, there was sheet rock and insulation across the street,” she said.
All five injured victims were taken to area hospitals with burn injuries. CBS News reported that a family of three — a local pastor, a high school teacher, and their teenage daughter — were hurt in the first explosion and were in stable condition as of Wednesday. Of the two people injured in the second blast, one remained in critical condition, according to San Antonio City Councilman Marc Whyte.
A neighbour, John Young, said the residents of the second home had initially evacuated but returned shortly before the explosion. “Those people had been outside with us, watching what was going on, and they went back inside the house and…then their house went up,” he said. “I mean, it went in flames.”
Responding to questions about whether firefighters could have prevented the second explosion, Frausto said gas leaks can be extremely difficult to detect. “We don't know when these things happen…especially under these conditions, there's sometimes no odour. It's just something that happened, and we have to deal with it,” she said.
Gas and electricity have since been shut off in the area, and several nearby homes have been evacuated. “We can't allow anybody back to their homes until it's safe,” Frausto said.
CPS Energy, the area’s natural gas provider, said it is continuing to investigate the cause of the explosions.
By Tamilla Hasanova
