"I'm glad to be alive": Witnesses describe Dallas apartment explosion

DALLAS - Residents and witnesses described the scene at the Oak Cliff apartment explosion as "like a nightmare." Several lost all of their belongings in the explosion that officials believe came from a gas leak.

"I'm glad to be alive"

Oak Cliff resident Kacee tells FOX 4's David Sentendrey she had just moved into her new apartment complex last week.

On Thursday, she left to run errands, and returned to the building on fire. All of her belongings were in the apartment that caught fire, including her 14-year-old cat Shirley. 

"I don't know what to do. This is everything I have right here," Kacee told FOX 4's David Sentendrey.

None of her family was in the apartment at the time of the explosion. Kacee says she saw two sisters she lived near run out of the apartment after the fire broke out.

Kacee says her mother described the smell of gas yesterday when helping her move things around in the apartment. Sources told FOX 4 that crews were heading to the scene to investigate reports of a gas leak when the explosion happened.

"It's weird because that's my home with all of my things," she said. "I'm glad to be alive."

Resident loses 5 pets

Alta DeBose tells FOX 4's Amelia Jones she lost three cats and two dogs in the explosion.

DeBose says neither she nor her husband were at the apartment at the time of the explosion.

 "This is like a nightmare," Debose said. "You go on thinking the next day is going to be the same, but it's not."

Man saves girl from apartment fire

Rodney Brown tells FOX 4's Amelia Jones he was able to rescue a young girl from the apartment before more flames engulfed it.

Brown says the victim told him her mother and siblings were in the apartment complex, but he was unable to return to the apartment after the fire had spread.

Dallas apartment explosion

What we know:

The fire was reported around 1:15 p.m. near the corner of East 9th Street and North Patton Avenue.

Dallas Fire-Rescue confirmed there were fatalities from the explosion.

"There have been fatalities at this point. We can all confirm that there are fatalities. We are still working through the recovery phase. So let us work through the recovery phase and give you a total number," Chief Mark Berry said.

At least four people have been taken to a hospital for treatment. Officials now confirm they are now in recovery mode, which could take two to four hours or more.

Sources told FOX 4 that DFR crews were en route to the location to investigate reports of a gas leak when the explosion occurred.

Images from SKY 4 showed a small apartment complex that was fully engulfed in flames. The windows on neighboring buildings appeared to be blown out and debris was scattered across the street. There also appeared to be a utility truck that was affected by the fire.

A large plume of black smoke was initially visible in Dallas for miles.

At about 3:30 p.m., DFR upgraded its response to five alarms with more than 100 firefighters.

DallasCrime and Public Safety