DALLAS (1080 KRLD)- The Red Cross says more than 150 had registered for help through Wednesday night at its reception center after the explosion at an apartment complex that morning. The explosion injured four tenants and four firefighters.
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The Red Cross says it was providing health, mental health and spiritual services to families who came. At the reception center, evacuees could sign up for hotel rooms with the Dallas Office of Emergency Management.
"It did happen. Will it happen again? We don't know, but what we need to do is get the right message out that this is a neighborhood that is underserved, that needs a better quality of life," says City Councilman Tennell Atkins.
Atkins says residents whose apartments were not damaged could choose whether to return home or stay in a hotel. He says he spoke to Atmos Energy Wednesday night, and they said they had not received any complaints about a smell of natural gas or a leak.
"They might have reported it to the apartment's owner, I don't know. I cannot answer that question, but when we find out what happened from the investigation, we'll find out for sure," Atkins says. "I keep saying, if you smell gas, this is not our first rodeo, report it."
He says the city will review 911 and 311 calls to see if anyone reported the smell of natural gas before the explosion.
Atmos Energy says technicians have been performing safety checks and "verified that our system is operating as expected, and we have found no indication that our system was involved."
"The safety of our community is our highest priority, and our crews remain on site to work to assist emergency responders. Our thoughts and prayers are with the firefighters and residents who were injured," the company wrote in a statement.
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson urges people not to speculate about a cause.
"It's hard, in situations like this, for people to be patient, but patience is actually what's required," he says. "We're going to have to investigate and find out what the source of this fire was. It's too early to know, and it's not helpful to speculate."
Johnson says he saw the firefighters in the hospital who were able to receive visitors.
"I told them they do a job not everybody can do. It takes a certain type of person and a great deal of bravery," he says.
Johnson says the city is fortunate not to have lost any lives, either among firefighters or tenants.
"I can guarantee you regulatory bodies and the city, since these are our residents, are all going to be working together to make sure we figure out what happened and do our best to make sure nothing like this ever happens again," he says.
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