1 of 84. "Doors blown off of a gas station near the intersection where the there (sic) was an #explosion at Watson Grinding and Manufacturing in #Houston," said Twitter user @CharleyLGardner. Another Twitter user posted a photo of a nearby convenience store, where the doors had been completely blown off by the explosion, he said. An intense explosion that could be felt for miles erupted in west Houston around 4:30 a.m Friday morning. "It busted out every window in our house. On January 24, 2020, a building at Watson Grinding and Manufacturing in northwest Houston, Texas, United States, exploded at 4:24 a.m. Debris was scattered as far as one-half of a mile, and approximately 200 nearby houses and businesses were damaged. Many more lives could have been lost if the blast had come two hours later, when more employees would have been in the building, Turner said. A gasoline station attendant cleans up broken glass from an explosion in Houston, Texas, on January 24, 2020. Harris County, injured employee sue owner of Watson Grinding and Manufacturing after explosion. This image taken from a doorbell camera video shared with KPRC 2 shows the moment of an explosion that rocked northwest Houston on Jan. 24, 2020. The fact that the explosion could be identified with radar shows how intense it … Here are some of the posts we’re … Daniel Arizpe, PIO/ Cy-Fair FD #hounews pic.twitter.com/wePEnGAIIR. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner got his first look at the damage caused by the major explosion on Friday evening that leveled the facility. Twitter lights up after deadly explosion in northwest Houston After the early-morning explosion, people took to Twitter to find out what happened. The two men who died in the blast were Frank Flores and Gerardo Castorena, both employees of the company, Houston Fire Chief Samuel Pena. The Cy-Fair Fire Department Search and Rescue helped out after the explosion and posted photos to Twitter that showed the destruction caused by the explosion. The doors from the Buckys convenience store were blown off by an explosion that rocked the Spring Branch neighborhood. An explosion at Watson Grinding and Manufacturing rocked northwest Houston early morning Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. Officials asked local residents to search for debris and body parts to assist with an investigation into the explosion's cause. Some small fires still were burning hours after the blast, and firefighters let those burn out by themselves before thoroughly searching the site, Pena said. Online records of the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration show the company was fined in 2013 for a. KLEIN, Texas – Several people were injured Friday in a large natural gas explosion and fire near Klein that prompted an evacuation of some residents in the area. Two people have been reported dead by officials. But residents with identification were allowed back into those areas Friday afternoon, Acevedo said. An estimated 200 homes were damaged in the explosion, they said. By Jason Hanna, Melissa Alonso and Chuck Johnston, CNN. "In that sense, we are very, very fortunate," Turner said. The nearest neighborhoods, Westbranch and Carverdale, were damaged most severely, Acevedo said. (CNN) — Two people were killed in Friday morning’s explosion at a northwest Houston manufacturing business, police said — a blast shook much of … A fireball rose from the scene after the blast, "I live downtown," Pena said, "and I felt it all the way downtown.". The business is in a strip of industrial and commercial businesses, surrounded to the west and east by homes. What started as a house fire quickly spread to a nearby warehouse that housed ammunition, causing authorities to order a "shelter in place." It busted everybody's garage door in around here ... and closer toward the explosion over here, it busted people's roofs in and walls in," he said. "A lot of the houses in the neighborhood are not going to be livable for a number of weeks," Martin said. | michelle.iracheta@chron.com, Houston reacts on Twitter to deadly Spring Branch explosion heard miles away. A gasoline station attendant in Houston cleans up broken glass after Friday's explosion. Twitter/ Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo. Alison Malone was sound asleep when she heard the sound of a "huge boom" that shook her house and blew the locked kitchen door that leads to the garage straight off its hinges. Mark Brady, who lives about a half mile from the manufacturing business, told. He wasn't injured, but he said the door to his studio blew off the frame, lights fell from the ceiling and sheetrock cracked. Did you hear, feel, see or were any way affected by this morning's explosion? Twitter, Joey Charpentier Show More Show Less 2 of 84. The blast shook other buildings, with reports on Twitter of a boom felt across the city. Houston Explosion: At Least 2 People Killed In Massive Industrial Blast The blast was felt more than 30 miles away, knocking homes off their foundations and casting debris about half a mile. Garrett Vinson, a musician who plays guitar, said he was at his music studio on Steffani Lane, almost directly across from the manufacturing plant. Americans have started leaving home even more than before the pandemic,... Cuomo defiant as wave of lawmakers calls for him to resign. "I was in shock," Vinson said, adding that he had to evacuate the studio and leave. And they say fashion died during the pandemic. An explosion … "This is, in essence, a disaster area right now," Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said of the area roughly an 18-mile drive northwest of downtown. - A large explosion shook the US city of Houston, Texas, early on Friday morning, with shocked residents woken before dawn as houses were badly damaged and glass windows blown in. Flames and smoke rise from the blast site early Friday. Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin said the city is working with various agencies to help move people into temporary housing. "We have no concerns about the quality of the air we've been breathing," Pena said. "There are families behind this devastation who are devastated," she said. (CNN)Two people were killed in Friday morning's explosion at a northwest Houston manufacturing business, police said -- a blast shook much of the city, damaged buildings up to a half mile away and left some residents at least temporarily displaced. Besides those killed, the fire department took two people to the hospital, and 18 people went to the hospital on their own, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Friday evening. Biden used his first prime-time address to announce plans to make all adults... Get the party started with these cool backdrops and party favors! UPDATE: As of … The fire department. "My wall is cracked and the moulding blew off the wall. houston explosion ‘Devastating for the country’: Houstonians recall surviving Lebanon explosion. 1 of 84. HOUSTON – Did you see us showing Friday morning’s explosion in northwest Houston on the radar? "I thought maybe the house had gotten hit by lightning. Responding to reports that the explosion was caused by the gas. The brick facade of this building in northwest Houston collapsed as a result of Friday's explosion. Pena said Friday evening that 214 homes were damaged in some way and, according to an initial rough estimate, about 50 were destroyed. It's for the kids. Chron.com compiled additional reactions from officials and others in Houston who heard, felt, saw or were affected in some way by the explosion. EXPLOSION IN HOUSTON: What we know about the company at center of Houston explosion. CNN's Tina Burnside, Gianluca Mezzofiore and theresa Waldrop contributed to this report. Send your photos or comments to Michelle at michelle.iracheta@chron.com. If this bill passes, say yes to drugs. "Look for any debris, any body parts, anything that may be related," and call police if anything is found, Acevedo said. Malone, who lives close to the west Houston manufacturing company where an explosion rocked its warehouse, said she couldn't really calm down enough to get her bearings. Author: Michelle Homer Friday in Houston.Photo: Capt. The explosion rocked Watson Grinding and Manufacturing around 4:15 a.m. CT (5:15 a.m. HOUSTON, Texas — Two people have died as a result of Friday morning’s explosion at a Houston manufacturing business, city Police Chief Art Acevedo said. Two people have died as a result of Friday morning's explosion at a Houston manufacturing business, city Police Chief Art Acevedo said. And then I realized there was no storm," the resident told KTRK. US Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who represents the area, said Friday evening that she had reached out to the Federal Emergency Management Agency about the possibility of federal help. Michelle Iracheta is a reporter in Houston. There is actual dirt from the ground outside that blew through the house and wall.". Another Houston resident, Joey Charpentier, said a camera mounted on his window captured the moment of the explosion and he posted the video on Twitter… A church in the area served as a temporary shelter "for anybody that we may have to evacuate out of their home due to damage," Pena said. "We want people to come back (partly) because we do want people to board up" their damaged homes, the police chief said. Damage to homes included broken windows and doors, and in at least one case, a collapsed ceiling, CNN affiliates reported. An investigation into what caused the blast is underway and may take months, Acevedo said. The debris field is so widespread -- officials estimated between a quarter-mile to a mile away -- police have asked residents for help with a potentially grim task: looking for human remains and other debris in their yards and on roofs. She bolted upright in her bed to check her home. >> Click ahead to see how Houston reacted to the explosion in Spring Branch. Fire department inspectors are gathering information about the business's full chemical inventory, and the company's owner has been cooperating with the investigation, officials said. Two people are dead Friday due to the explosion, city officials confirmed at a press conference. Smoke rises Friday morning from the site of an explosion that happened hours earlier in northwest Houston. Police at some point Friday cut off access to the damaged Westbranch and Carverdale neighborhoods, hoping to ward off potential looters. HOUSTON (AP) — A massive explosion Friday leveled a warehouse in Houston, leaving at least two people dead, damaging nearby buildings and … "My entire house was shaking," she said in a message. 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HOUSTON — Seven people were injured in a natural gas line explosion and fire that led to evacuations in northwest Harris County Friday. HOUSTON – An explosion and fire Monday at the Houston Federation of Teachers’ building near the Gulfgate neighborhood resulted in a partial collapse of the building.. The Houston Police Department tweeted just after 4:30 a.m. that they were responding to an explosion near the 4500 block of Gessner. 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Houston reacts on Twitter to deadly Spring Branch explosion heard miles away Michelle Iracheta , Houston Chronicle Jan. 24, 2020 Updated: Jan. 24, 2020 11:19 a.m. Screenshot of video from Joey Charpentier, who on January 24, 2020, shared video to Twitter of an explosion in Houston, Texas from a camera mounted on a window. None of the injuries were life-threatening, he said. HOUSTON – Northwest Houston residents turned to social media early Friday morning after an explosion at a business.. HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- At least two people are dead after a massive explosion rocked a northwest Houston neighborhood Friday morning, breaking windows, collapsing ceilings and … A massive explosion ripped through a building in Houston early on Friday, injuring at least one person and shattering windows in a blast heard across a wide area, officials and media said. Read her on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, houstonchronicle.com. At least two nearby schools closed for the day. Cy-Fair FD Search and Rescue 1 and @txtf1 assist @HoustonFire investigators w/ a search for possible missing people and human remains after an explosion in the 4500 block of Gessner Rd. The Houston Fire Department says there were a total of about 450 structures that were damaged in an explosion at a northwest Houston business last week. ET), tearing apart several structures while sending debris and shock waves much farther, pushing some nearby homes off their foundations, officials said. Part of the ceiling of this Houston home collapsed after the explosion.