5 injured in home explosion, fire in Richmond

RICHMOND — Several people were hospitalized after a home explosion and fire in Richmond, Thursday morning.

>>PHOTOS: Explosion, house fire under investigation in Richmond neighborhood

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As previously reported, first responders were called to the 100 block of Randolph Street for a reported explosion and fire.

As reported on News Center 7 at 5:00, neighbors reported hearing an explosion and spotting smoke and flames around 8:45 a.m.

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Richmond Fire Chief Jeff Kinder said Thursday afternoon that five people were taken to Reid Health from the scene. Of those five, two were flown to a burn unit in Indianapolis.

Richmond Police Department Assistant Chief Adam Blanton later shared that 51-year-old Forrest Tevis IV and a 24-year-old Autumn Reed were hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.

Medical helicopters took both adults to Eskenazi for specialized burn treatment.

Two children were treated on scene for possible smoke inhalation, according to Blanton.

A Good Samaritan who helped before authorities arrived on scene was also treated but released by medics.

One neighbor said he thought at least one woman was seriously hurt.

“I don’t think the lady’s going to make it. The other guy got blown off the porch,” James Clay, of Richmond, said. “I mean, they got blown off the porch.”

Clay lives next door and told News Center 7 his windows shattered from an explosion that rattled his home.

Another neighbor ran outside and saw flames all over the side of the home and racing upwards.

Neighbors said they saw an adult man and woman who live in the home get rushed into ambulances.

People next door were also in danger. A mom and two young children had the back half of their home destroyed.

“Ran over to the house on the corner, grabbed the neighbor lady and her two little kids out,” Clay said. “I tried saving her cats.”

That mother and her children also went to the hospital.

The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Richmond Fire Department and the Indiana Fire Marshal.

“This was a dangerous and fast-moving situation, and I’m incredibly proud of the swift, courageous actions of our officers, firefighters, and medics,” Blanton said.

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