A day after a natural gas explosion leveled a two-story apartment building in Dallas’ Oak Cliff neighborhood, killing three people including a toddler, recovery crews continue sifting through the rubble as federal investigators arrive and 19 displaced families search for a path forward.
The explosion occurred at approximately 12:47 p.m. Thursday at the Clyde apartment building, located at 409 East 9th Street, just east of the Bishop Arts District and north of the Dallas Zoo. Dallas Fire-Rescue crews had been called to the location minutes earlier in response to a reported gas leak when the building exploded as the first units from nearby Station 15 were arriving on scene.
The blast completely destroyed the two-story structure, sending thick black smoke into the sky and scattering debris onto an adjacent home and vehicles parked on the street. A truck-mounted drilling rig parked in front of the building caught fire. Nearly 100 firefighters responded as the incident escalated to a five-alarm emergency.
Dallas Fire-Rescue confirmed three victims were recovered from the debris: two adult women and a child identified as an 18-month-old boy. Five additional people were hospitalized. As of Thursday afternoon, one remains in critical but stable condition. The other two have been released or are expected to be released. All 19 families who lived in the building are now accounted for.
Neighbors described the moment of the explosion as sudden and total. “I was in the living room playing a video game, and my brother was in the restroom,” one witness, a young boy who lives in an adjacent building, told NBC DFW. “We just heard a big boom, and then he came out, and he just started hugging me, making sure I was OK, because that’s what big brothers do. And then we looked out and that whole thing was just gone.”
One woman, Rosy Martinez, told NBC DFW she was searching for her sister and nephew after the explosion. The Dallas County Democratic Party posted that Democratic Precinct Chair Sylvia Collins was among those unaccounted for in the hours following the blast. Her status has not been publicly updated by officials.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates serious accidents involving natural gas pipelines in addition to its better-known role in aviation crashes, confirmed Thursday it is sending an investigation team to Dallas. The cause of the gas leak that triggered the explosion has not been officially determined.
Dallas Fire-Rescue said it has transitioned from active rescue operations to recovery and excavation, a process officials said will continue for at least 24 hours. The city has established a Family Assistance Center at W.H. Adamson High School, located approximately one block from the explosion site, for displaced residents and those seeking information about victims. The American Red Cross, the Salvation Army and Family Gateway are among the organizations providing support.
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson addressed residents Thursday evening. “While the fire has been extinguished, recovery efforts continue,” Johnson said in a statement. “We do not yet know the final toll on this community, but it is already high. The survivors of this tragedy lost their homes and everything in them. And there are families grieving loved ones who perished.” Johnson praised the response from Dallas Fire-Rescue, saying crews arrived within minutes and spent hours working to reach every affected resident.
This is the second major gas-related explosion in North Texas in recent weeks. In April, a woman was critically injured when a home in Lake Dallas exploded due to a gas leak traced to a section of aging plastic pipe installed in the 1970s that was supposed to have been removed decades ago by Atmos Energy, the region’s primary natural gas distributor. It has not been confirmed whether Atmos Energy infrastructure was involved in Thursday’s Oak Cliff explosion.
The investigation into the cause remains active. Additional victims have not been ruled out as excavation continues.
Anyone displaced by the explosion or in need of assistance is asked to contact the Family Assistance Center at W.H. Adamson High School, 201 East 9th Street, Dallas, TX 75203.