As firefighters worked into the night Thursday, combing through the debris of a collapsed Oak Cliff apartment building, officials said three people, including a child, were found dead. At least five others were hospitalized.
Crews were responding about 12:45 p.m. to a reported gas leak at The Clyde apartments in the 400 block of East Ninth Street, near Patton Avenue, when an explosion sent the complex up in flames. Authorities have not yet confirmed the cause.
Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesman Jason Evans tallied the deaths and injuries during an 8 p.m. news conference, the latest update from city officials, and said among the deceased were two females and a child. Their names and ages were not released.
By early evening, crews had shifted their efforts from rescue to recovery, digging through the ruins by hand, while heavy equipment was brought in to tear down what little of the structure remained standing.
“Our operation with regard to recovery does not end until the entire building has been searched,” Evans said. Shortly after the briefing, the National Transportation Safety Board announced it was sending a team to Dallas to assist in the investigation.
Evans said Dallas Fire-Rescue heard reports that a construction crew, unrelated to Atmos Energy, damaged a natural gas pipeline near the complex. A city of Dallas spokesperson said the city also had no ongoing work in the area.
Estefania Eherrera, who lives at a neighboring apartment property, said she heard a worker mention a pipeline minutes before the blast.
Eherrera had just returned from work and was walking across the street to pick up her children from a friend’s apartment when she noticed a worker pacing, wiping sweat from his face and trying to call someone. “The pipeline, the gas pipeline,” she heard the man say.
Within minutes, Eherrera said, everything shook.
Eherrera said she ran outside to find the building across the street had exploded. Moments later, she saw a young girl climb out from beneath debris.
Eherrera yelled for the girl not to move and tried to get the attention of nearby firefighters. She said she wanted to run to the child herself but feared another explosion could hurt or kill her, leaving her own children without their mother.
A man then ran across the street, grabbed the girl and carried her to safety, she said. As he placed her on the grass, Eherrera said she saw another burst of fire.
Staff writers Sana Muneer and Lola Jahant contributed to this report.