Some allowed home following Texas blast
Reports of small gas fires unnerve displaced residents
WEST, Texas – Stranded families growing weary and frustrated since a deadly Texas fertilizer plant explosion left them barricaded from their battered homes finally began returning Saturday, but only under a curfew and strict warnings to not wander beyond their own yards.
Authorities gave the much-awaited OK after a nervous morning. Emergency workers had told residents packed in a hotel – waiting for updates about their neighborhood – that leaking gas tanks were causing small fires near the blast site, keeping authorities from lifting blockades.
Officials quickly emphasized that the fires were contained and the town of West was not in danger. They later repeated that message as evacuees in a mile-long line of cars inched along a downtown road and toward the blast radius, although the chances that most would get to their houses Saturday night dimmed as a 7 p.m. curfew approached.
“It is safe, safe and safe,” City Council member Steve Vanek said.
Evacuated residents had been anxiously waiting to return and assess what is left of roughly 80 damaged homes after the blast Wednesday night at West Fertilizer Co. that killed 14 and injured 200 more. The blast scarred a four- to- five-block radius that included a nursing home, an apartment building and a school.
Those allowed to return first were residents in a small quadrant of streets that were farthest away from the blast in the barricaded area, and whose homes sustained relatively less damage.
Some who do not live in the designated area were turned away. Officials said it could be weeks before those who lived closest to the explosion – many whose homes were irreparably destroyed – could go back.
Tom and Tiffanie Juntunen, who were among the first responders to the blast, wanted to grab a few essentials before continuing to spend the night with friends.
“There’s a boil order, utilities could be sketchy, better to hit the road,” said Tom Juntunen, a 33-year-old construction worker.
During a town hall meeting Saturday, Mayor Tommy Muska apologized for failing to communicate with residents, telling them he had been focused on technical aspects of the situation. He said the damage northwest of the site is the worst. “When you see this place you will know a miracle happened,” Muska told the town hall crowd.