A man was in critical condition Tuesday after a home exploded in a residential neighborhood in south Fort Worth, fire officials said.
No other injuries were reported.
Fort Worth firefighters responded to the scene just before 11 a.m. in the 400 block of West Spurgeon Street.
The explosion caused major damage to the single-story home, fire officials said. No other homes appeared to have been damaged.
When they arrived, firefighters encountered a fire at the rear of the home and brought it under control.
Firefighters were told that a man who had been in the house had run out of the home to seek help from neighbors who were across the street.
The injured man was flown to the burn center at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, according to a MedStar spokesman.
“We believe he was the only one in the house,” said Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman Mike Drivdahl in an interview with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on Tuesday.
He suffered severe burns to the front of his body including his face and airway, fire officials said.
The cause of the explosion is under investigation, fire officials said.
Neighbor Minerva Collaco heard the explosion.
“We thought someone had run into a wall,” Collaco said Tuesday. “We came outside and saw a little bit of flames, so my son called 9-1-1.”
At about that time, Collaco said, she saw the man who had been living in the house run outside and ask for help.
“He asked one of my neighbors for help and he started rolling on the floor,” Collaco said. “Someone used a water hose and put water on him.”
Arson and bomb crews were on the scene to investigate, Drivdahl said. Fire officials have determined there is no danger to the surrounding area, he said.
“This appears to be an isolated incident,” Drivdahl said.
Investigators continued throughout the day to collect evidence and interview witnesses.
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