An Ohio apartment building, evacuated after a deadly explosion nearby, could reopen soon
A 16-story apartment building in Ohio may reopen early next month several weeks after it was temporarily shuttered following a deadly natural gas explosion that severely damaged a neighboring building
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A 16-story apartment building in Ohio may reopen early next month, several weeks after it was temporarily shuttered following a deadly natural gas explosion that severely damaged a neighboring building.
Youngstown officials had ordered the evacuation of the International Towers on June 10 after an engineering firm determined that the neighboring Realty Tower building remained structurally unsafe and was in “danger of imminent collapse.” Another nearby building, which houses the city’s only hotel, was also ordered closed.
City officials said this week that enough of the Realty Tower should be demolished by Aug. 2 and that the two shuttered buildings could reopen by that day. It's hoped that demolition work will start at the Realty Tower next week, but officials said the work schedule remains fluid.
The May 28 explosion blew out much of the ground floor of Realty Tower, killing a bank employee and injuring several others. Part of the ground floor collapsed into its basement and sent the facade across the street. Bricks, glass and other debris littered the sidewalk outside the 13-story building, which had a Chase Bank branch at street level and apartments in upper floors.
A crew working in the building’s basement area intentionally cut a gas line, not knowing it was pressurized, according to a preliminary finding by the National Transportation Safety Board. Investigators are still working to determine why the pipe was pressurized.