Table Of Content
- MORE: 6 dead, 1 critically hurt at house fire; murder investigation underway
- Pennsylvania house explosion victims named; county says house had ‘hot water tank issues’
- Heather Oravitz, 51
- news Alerts
- reported dead, including teen, after house explosion in Pennsylvania
- PHOTOS: House explosion in Plum Borough
PLUM, Pa. (AP) — Investigators said Friday the location of an explosion that killed six people and destroyed three houses near Pittsburgh last month was inside one of the homes, ruling out an outside cause. Upon arriving at the scene, authorities found people trapped under debris and reported that it appeared that one house had exploded while two others were "engulfed in fire," police said. 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. 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." On Tuesday, the medical examiner’s office identified the five victims.
MORE: 6 dead, 1 critically hurt at house fire; murder investigation underway
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. The sixth victim, identified as 56-year-old Paul Oravitz, died on Wednesday at UPMC Mercy. Emergency medical workers treated 57 firefighters for minor issues while they responded to the explosion and fire, Chief Imbarlina said. The borough of Plum urged people to stay away from Rustic Ridge in the immediate aftermath of the explosion. The incident occurred in the borough of Plum, in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. Video captured at the scene showed several homes on fire in the community of Rustic Ridge.
Pennsylvania house explosion victims named; county says house had ‘hot water tank issues’
The National Transportation Safety Board investigated and discovered it was caused by a two-inch gas line that was damaged and then failed five years later after it corroded. There are a lot of questions surrounding Saturday’s house explosion, which is the third house explosion in Plum over the last 15 years. His daughter Emily told us her dad truly had a heart of gold, and that he was the most selfless man and offered a helping hand to everyone. He never lived a day without joy and his family was always his priority. One died in at the hospital after being transported in critical condition. Two people who were taken to the hospital in stable condition have since been released.
Heather Oravitz, 51
Two of those individuals have been released from the hospital while one remains in critical condition. 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.
Rustic Ridge house explosion: One month later - WTAE Pittsburgh
Rustic Ridge house explosion: One month later.
Posted: Wed, 13 Sep 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
"They were someone you could laugh with and someone that would hug you when you needed support," Campbell said. She said Paul, 56, and Heather, 51, were "very devoted, very family-focused, dependable and kind." 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." Gov. Josh Shapiro said he and the first lady were "praying for the families" affected and promised them that "as you rebuild, we will have your back." Officials set up a Disaster Distress Helpline, and the Red Cross and the Salvation Army were assisting affected residents, the Allegheny County government Facebook post said.
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Three homes were destroyed by the blast; 10 homes have been identified as possibly being structurally compromised. 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. Officials have said one was found outside a garage, four were in the basement and the sixth was located and rescued from the rear yard. He was taken to a trauma center where he died several days later.
House Explosion Under Investigation
The Fire Marshal’s Office said several levels of testing and sampling have been completed, and results of those tests were reviewed and discussed during joint investigative meetings. 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. Paul and Heather Oravitz, Kevin Sebunia, Mike Thomas and Casey and Keegan Clontz were killed in the explosion. “Because they would do it for us, that’s the kind of family they are, they are amazing so to just give anything back,” said Harrison. The cause and manner of the victims’ deaths are still pending, and there is no time frame for when those determinations will be made.
reported dead, including teen, after house explosion in Pennsylvania
Company technicians will be going door to door to conduct a safety check and relight customers’ appliances, the spokesperson said. The Allegheny County Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating multiple possibilities, including the homeowners having “hot water tank issues,” Plum Borough and Allegheny County officials said in a news release. 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. Five people died and three others were injured after a house explosion on a suburban street in Pennsylvania on Saturday spread flames to several nearby homes, shattering windows and causing walls to crumble, the authorities said. The blast destroyed three homes and damaged at least a dozen others, officials said.
Homeowners were having issues with hot water tank before deadly blast in Pennsylvania, officials say - The Associated Press
Homeowners were having issues with hot water tank before deadly blast in Pennsylvania, officials say.
Posted: Tue, 15 Aug 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Plum has yet to receive any applications for demolition of homes in Rustic Ridge, said David Soboslay, the borough’s interim manager. Hubner said the Zarroli house isn’t as badly damaged as others in the vicinity because of where and how it sits. Hubner said suction from the explosion first pulled the siding off the house, then the concussion blew out almost every window, the entry doors and the garage doors. Zarroli’s house is among 10 others that were so badly damaged they were declared uninhabitable. Zarroli and his wife, Stacie, lived at 138 Rustic Ridge Drive since 2008. They lived among friends and raised their two daughters and a son there.
Borough Manager Michael Thomas, 57, was also killed in the blast. He lived one home over, but he was next door inside the home that exploded at the time. His wife, who is a teacher at Butler Area School District, daughter and their dog were in their home. His wife was able to escape through a window and his daughter was able to run out with the dog.
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. Thomas was the borough manager and Heather Oravitz was the community development director.
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