DETROIT (WWJ) -- People all over the Metro Detroit area got an emergency alert on their phones early Monday morning, about an explosion at an apartment complex in Detroit.
Police, fire and EMS all responded to the screen in the area of Littlefield and Schoolcraft streets, where a portion of the building collapsed in on itself, at around 4 a.m. on March 31, injuring more than a dozen people.
"The back of this two-story brick apartment building looks like a dolls' house, just blown out," WWJ Newsradio 950's Charlie Langton reported. "When first responders and firefighters got there, some people were trapped on the second floor."
Official said a total of 13 residents were taken to hospitals, including six children. Three of those people were reported to be in critical condition. One man was said to be burned over 90% of his body.
As of mid-afternoon, Detroit Fire said a 27-year-old woman and a 28-year-old man, remained in critical condition at Detroit Receiving Hospital, and a 3-year-old girl remained in critical condition at Children's Hospital of Michigan.
All other patients, including the five other kids, were treated for their injuries and released.
Detroit Fire Commissioner Charles Sims said it's not known what caused the reported explosion, and the building — which was left leaning — will have to be demolished.
Sims said, after everyone was out of the building, his department's most immediate concern was stabilizing the structure.
"No cause update yet," Sims told Langton, late in the morning. "We're gonna be working with demo. Demo is out here now to start demolition and we're going to working collaboratively with them to try to find a cause of the fire."
DTE Energy was also on scene investigating, and the Salvation Army responded to help displaced residents.
After so many people in Metro Detroit had their phones buzzing at 6 a.m. with an Emergency Alert message about the explosion — including some far from the scene — it's left the public asking why.
The Detroit Fire Department said the alert was supposed to be sent out just to the zip code surrounding the incident, but an error was made. In a statement, the FD said it "apologizes for any inconvenience this caused the community."