'Pretty much leveled': Fire officials respond to house explosion in northwest OKC

Oklahoma City fire department officials were searching for clues and bodies Friday afternoon after a house exploded in northwest Oklahoma City.

About 3:20 p.m., emergency teams responded to a phone call from neighbors in the 2000 block of NW 40th St., near 39th and Pennsylvania Avenue.

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"The structure here is pretty much leveled," said Capt. Scott Douglas with the Oklahoma City Fire Department. "Our first arriving fire trucks on scene did smell an odor of gas when they first got here."

Firefighters shut off the gas line and power supply connected to the house before stabilizing what remained of the structure. Eleven units responded to the site, and K-9 units searched the area for bodies.

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"The report we have from a neighbor is that there was just one gentleman who lived in this residence, and he said, 'If the truck's not here, he's not here,'" Douglas said. "We can't confirm if anybody was in the house, but the K-9 dogs haven't found any, and at this time we don't have any reports of injuries to anyone."

The Oklahoma Natural Gas company arrived to investigate the scene.

Nearby residents told firefighters "gas trouble" in the neighborhood had been reported a few days prior to the explosion, and officials said the company had been working on repairs in the same neighborhood earlier in the week. However, the source of the explosion was not confirmed.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: House explosion in OKC leaves fire crews searching for clues, bodies