How did 5 People Die In The Plum, Pennsylvania House Explosion

Table Of Content

• Investigators pinpoint house as source of explosion that killed 6 near Pittsburgh last month
• Subscribe to Press Releases
• Safety Investigation Ongoing Following Deadly House Explosion in Plum Borough, Allegheny County
• ABC News
• LATEST UPDATES: 6th person dies following Plum house explosion
• ABC News Live
• victims identified

By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy. Michael Thomas, 57, also was a neighbor of the Oravitz family who was in the house when it exploded. Keegan played football for the Plum Mustangs and would have started junior high in a week and a half, the newspaper reported. Casey Clontz, 38, was a massive Pittsburgh Steelers fan and made sure everyone knew it, proudly tattooing his love of the team on his leg. Kellen Stepler is a TribLive reporter covering the Allegheny Valley and Burrell school districts and surrounding areas. The process to confirm the origin and cause may include interviews, investigative photography or videography, drone imagery and 3D scans, debris layering, scene reconstruction and examining all utility connections and circuitry, the fire marshal said.

Investigators pinpoint house as source of explosion that killed 6 near Pittsburgh last month

LATEST UPDATES: 6th person dies following Plum house explosion - WPXI Pittsburgh

LATEST UPDATES: 6th person dies following Plum house explosion.

Posted: Sat, 12 Aug 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Three people were taken to area hospitals, including one who was in critical condition and two who were treated and released. Despite this tragedy causing so much heartache, the community has been stepping up to help one another and first responders, donating things like food and water. Neighbors said they smelled gas Tuesday and called the gas company, which confirmed the leaks. One leak was along Kathy Lynn Drive and the other was at Crestview and Mower drives. The Regency Park and Rustic Ridge neighborhoods are about a 10-minute drive apart.

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First responders found people trapped under debris and two homes "engulfed in fire," in addition to one that appeared to have exploded and multiple others with the windows blown out, according to the post. A sixth person has died after a house exploded in Pennsylvania as fire officials continue to investigate the cause of the explosion, officials said Wednesday. Three days after the deadly house explosion in Plum's Rustic Ridge neighborhood, crews investigated two gas leaks in Plum's Regency Park neighborhood on Tuesday. A company spokesperson said Wednesday that it had completed additional system testing with the Fire Marshal’s office and the state Public Utility Commission, meaning it can now begin restoring gas service.

Safety Investigation Ongoing Following Deadly House Explosion in Plum Borough, Allegheny County

"BG&E came around and was probing all the areas and all the houses and then they didn't find anything what they said," Michael added. By morning, all that was left of the home was rubble and debris. The homeowner told WJZ that she and her children were not home when this happened.

The other pipeline, a gathering line that ties into the suction line, was taken out of service immediately after the explosion “out of an abundance of caution.” On Aug. 15, that gathering line passed a pressure test with no leaks detected. The DEP said inspectors found detectible concentrations of combustible gas throughout the Rustic Ridge area on Aug. 14, but the gas is no longer detectible in soil near the incident. Isotopic samples, which help to identify molecular signatures, were collected Aug. 14 by the DEP and Peoples from soil and a nearby Peoples meter. The borough of Plum urged people to stay away from Rustic Ridge in the immediate aftermath of the explosion. Three structures have been destroyed and at least a dozen more are damaged, including with windows blown out.

LATEST UPDATES: 6th person dies following Plum house explosion

In addition to those resources, the Plum Senior High School is open Monday and Tuesday, offering support services for students, staff, and community members. A spokesperson for Peoples Gas said on Wednesday crews will start restoring service, which was shut off to about 50 homes after the explosion. In a release late Monday, the county said the home where the explosion happened was having "hot water tank issues." The tank was in the basement. “They cared about the community and everybody in it, including the kids, including the people. Big time,” Lucas said when speaking of his friend Paul and Paul’s wife Heather. The Allegheny County Fire Marshal’s office has confirmed the house that exploded had hot water tank issues.

h victim dies in Pennsylvania house explosion: Officials

One house appears to have exploded, with two others becoming engulfed in flames, according to Allegheny County spokesperson Amie Downs. Peoples Natural Gas said Saturday night on its website that it shut off gas service to about 50 homes in the area as a precaution. He said that gas and electrical services were shut off to most of the area Saturday "out of an abundance of caution" and that officials planned to work to restore some of the services. The cause of the explosion is under investigation by the county fire marshal's office along with borough and county law enforcement. Imbarlina warned that the investigation would be a "slow and long process" that would include a lot of forensic testing and could last "months if not years." The police responded to a report of a house explosion around 10 a.m.

Any resident who has questions about gas service in the neighborhood can find updates here. Following the explosion, utilities were shut off due to safety concerns, but electricity has been restored to all but the immediate area surrounding the blast. Chief Conley said that 57 firefighters were treated at the scene for minor injuries. The blast sent shockwaves through the area, with nearby windows and doors blown off when the home along Rustic Ridge Drive exploded. It didn't take long before the two homes on both sides also caught fire. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Officer identified the first five victims as 38-year-old Casey Clontz, 12-year-old Keegan Clontz, 51-year-old Heather Oravitz, 55-year-old Kevin Sebunia and 57-year-old Michael Thomas.

Saturday's home explosion in Plum the third to happen in the borough in 15 years - CBS Pittsburgh

Saturday's home explosion in Plum the third to happen in the borough in 15 years.

Posted: Sun, 13 Aug 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

We spoke with him as he approached the site for the first time Sunday morning. Officials said the effort to resume utility operations to the borough was underway, though electricity coverage for houses neighboring the explosion site would remain without power. Engineers from the Safety Division are in the field daily, conducting inspections of utility construction, operations, and integrity management activities. They also investigate issues discovered during their inspections, along with incidents reported by utility operators and emergency response agencies.

"There's people that burn a fire and little fire pits, maybe something caught on fire, but not an entire house," said neighbor Logan Lambert. While at the scene, a male reported having burn injuries and was taken to the hospital for further treatment. Upon their arrival, crews found the home engulfed in flames and requested a 2nd-alarm alert to be sent out.

The Allegheny County fire marshal’s office said all potential outside factors were eliminated, including wells, pipelines and other utilities, pinpointing the source as a home on Rustic Ridge Drive in Plum Borough. Fire crews responded to the two-alarm fire late Saturday, the Baltimore County Fire Department said in a statement on social media. Fire crews are assessing the neighborhood and police continue to investigate the fire and explosion.

The point of origin for a deadly home explosion in Plum on Aug. 12 came from inside the house at 141 Rustic Ridge, the Allegheny County Fire Marshal’s Office said Friday. Eighteen fire departments responded to the scene, which remains active. Allegheny County Emergency Management officials and the Allegheny County Fire Marshals are at the scene as well.

Among those killed were a proud father who gave his daughter away at her wedding last month, a super involved hockey mom and dad who never missed a game, and a 12-year-old boy described as a "1,000% momma's boy." “The findings suggest that concentrations of gas detected on Aug. 14 came from (a) single inundation event, likely the explosion itself,” the DEP’s statement said. Gas samples were collected for isotopic analysis from five of those locations, including the area around a leaking gas pipeline, gas in the soil near a Peoples meter and under the foundation of the home. The home at 141 Rustic Ridge was owned by Paul and Heather Oravitz, and all six victims were inside that home when it exploded. Officials continue to investigate the explosion that occurred just less than a month ago in Plum’s Rustic Ridge subdivision, the Fire Marshal’s Office said.

The cause of the explosion is under investigation by Plum and county law enforcement agencies and the county fire marshal’s office. The state Public Utility Commission and local utilities also were at the scene. PLUM, Pa. — Five people were found dead after a house explosion in western Pennsylvania that destroyed three structures and damaged at least a dozen others, authorities said Sunday. Five people have died, including a teen, following a house explosion in Pennsylvania that caused multiple injuries and several house fires, officials told NBC News. Our thoughts are with the Plum residents impacted by an explosion and fires in their neighborhood this morning. Our emergency services team are on scene along with our fire marshals.

The state public utilities commission and local utilities also were at the scene. PLUM, Pa. (AP) — Four people were dead and a fifth was unaccounted for following a house explosion in western Pennsylvania that destroyed three structures and damaged at least a dozen others Saturday morning, authorities said. Of the three people taken to hospitals, two were released while one remained in critical condition, said Steve Imbarlina, deputy director of fire and emergency services for Allegheny County.

Together, we can create an environment of compassion and unity that will help us heal. Video given to Channel 11 shows the moment a house exploded in Plum Borough. My son was just there a couple of days before playing with Keegan so it’s heartbreaking,” said Brock Harrison, Carl’s Tavern manager. Five people were recovered from the scene, including one child, after the explosion. 57 firefighters were treated at the scene due to “minor issues.” They were treated at the scene and then went back to work.