One person is dead and another is critically injured after a December 21 Phoenix house explosion. Firefighters, who were called to the scene near 11th Avenue and Fillmore Street just before 10 a.m., found the house fully engulfed.
LIVE: BALL OF FIRE! One dead after house fire/explosion in Phoenix – Phoenix Video https://t.co/7phuvvthxa https://t.co/gymwC9Sc8j
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A witness described the injured man as having sustained serious burns to his arms and upper body. He was taken by ambulance to an area hospital for treatment.
The injured man is believed to be an employee of Spencer’s TV & Appliance who had arrived at the house that morning to install a new stove, a gift from a local church to Prudencia Gonzales Fuentes who lived in the house with her three grandchildren. The family was not at home when the blast occurred. The identify of the person who was killed has not been released.
The fire that followed the blast completely destroyed it and then spread to a neighboring house. Phoenix fire Capt. Jake Van Hook told azfamily.com that the fire was fueled by a gas source.There was a propane tank on the property, he said.
Southwest Gas told the Associated Press that is has not provided service to the address for several years and did not detect any leaks at the scene. The company released the following statement to local media: “Our hearts go out to those touched by today’s incident. Safety is always a top priority at Southwest Gas and as a result of our extensive investigation in the areas that we have been granted access to, we have not found any gas reads in the area and at this time we have no information suggesting natural gas played a role in the incident.”
Sources:
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article191118794.html
http://www.wfaa.com/news/1-dead-1-injured-after-explosion-and-fire-destroy-home-in-phoenix/501418185
https://www.abc15.com/news/region-phoenix-metro/central-phoenix/fd-1-dead-1-injured-in-phoenix-house-explosion