Dallas (AP) — Firefighters in Dallas were ready to evacuate residents from a two‑story apartment building on Oak Cliff when the structure erupted in a huge fireball, killing three people and injuring several others.
Dallas Fire‑Rescue Chief Justin Ball said the crews had arrived on the scene after a gas‑leak alarm report and were about to enter the building to guide residents to safety when the explosion occurred. No officers were injured, the chief told a news conference Friday.
We did everything we were supposed to do, Ball said. There is nobody unaccounted for; we’d still be searching.
The building, which contained 22 apartments, was taken down by the blast. The explosion shook nearby homes and the resulting inferno scorched the complex's exterior, turning it into a charred ruin. Fire‑Rescue spokesperson Jason Evans reported that a child and two other people were killed and that at least five people were injured and sent to local hospitals.
Police cars and tape still cordoned off the site on Friday. The smell of smoke lingered over streets several blocks from the epicenter, and law‑enforcement officials and workers in bright yellow vests circled the rubble.
A National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation has been launched. The agency announced that a team of eight investigators would be on the scene by Friday afternoon. Initial reports indicate that a contractor may have damaged an underground natural gas pipeline while completing a soil‑testing job at the complex. Atmos Energy, the local gas provider, said that an unrelated construction crew had struck the line.
We were told the pipeline was damaged during routine work,” Atmos officials told the press. “We are cooperating fully with investigators.
The building’s owner is reportedly in the process of selling the property to a buyer who plans to erect a new housing unit on the site. The owner's attorney, Geoff Henley, said the firm was shocked by the tragedy. We still do not know how many perished in this fireball, Henley added.
Neighbors were shaken by the blast. Sherry Woods, who lives in an apartment just across an alley from the site, said she and her boyfriend smelled a gas‑like odor before the explosion. All you heard was ‘boom.’ I felt the building shake, Woods recalled. She was sitting on her front porch when the shockwave nearly knocked her down.
Another resident, Trish Thompson, surveyed the vacant lot from her yard and reported hearing a “loud rumble, something more like a train,” followed by smoke and a roaring fire. She noted the sharp smell of gasoline in the air.
Authorities have set up a family reunification center at a nearby high school, where victims’ families are being provided food and lodging. Frances Rizo, a friend from the building, was still searching for her missing roommate on the first day after the blaze, saying, She’s not answering her phone.
Local officials suspect a contractor’s illegal drilling repair work was the trigger. Dallas Fire‑Rescue has urged companies to follow strict guidelines when tunneling under gas pipelines. The incident has sparked renewed scrutiny of pipeline safety regulations.
Details about the gas leak—whether it was a natural pipeline fault or human error—remain unknown, but the NTSB’s investigators will examine excavation records and the timeline of the incident.
For now, the city mourns the loss of residents and continues to recover the site for future redevelopment.
_This article is written for RealTime Wire, a 24‑hour news outlet providing live coverage, real‑time community chat, and the user‑generated content that keeps our audience informed in the moment_. "author": "RTW News", "date": "2026-05-29"
