UPDATE 02/08 7:40 AM – Fort Worth first responders report 1 person in critical condition after the explosion; 4 in serious, and 16 with non-life threatening or minor injuries. Fort Worth Police spokesman Jimmy Polizani reports first responders also pulled some victims trapped in buildings or businesses nearby the hotel.
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — An explosion at a historic Texas hotel on Monday injured 21 people and trapped some in the basement before they were found by rescue crews, authorities said. One person was in critical condition.
Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman Craig Trojacek said investigators are confident the blast was “some kind of gas explosion.” The 20-story Sandman Signature hotel in the heart of downtown Fort Worth was undergoing construction. Mayor Mattie Parker says the city will work with the owners of the property as soon as possible after they make sure the building is structurally sound.
Update from AP at 4:45pm:
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Aerial footage in Fort Worth, Texas, showed debris from a hotel scattered across downtown streets Monday as authorities said they were responding to a “major incident” and urged people to avoid the area.
Fort Worth City Councilman Carlos Flores posted on Facebook that there had been a gas leak and an explosion. Video showed what appeared to be large sections of a building in the middle of the street.
The city’s emergency medical service has sent nine ambulances to the scene and found “multiple” people injured, although a spokesperson could not immediately say how many. Desiree Partain of MedStar said there are not any fatalities reported so far but stressed that they were still assessing the situation.
Partain said she could not characterize the types of injuries that medical staff were finding and said she did not know their cause.
(Copyright 2024, The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Original Story:
FORT WORTH (WBAP/KLIF) – Fort Worth police are reporting a major incident in downtown Fort Worth after reports of an explosion at a building downtown.
This is along Houston street between 7th and 8th street.
Our media partner WFAA-TV is reporting that this was a gas explosion and there are injuries.
We are standing by for any updates from MedStar or Fort Worth police.
This is a developing story.
(Copyright 2024, WBAP/KLIF. All Rights Reserved.)
