6th person dies in Pennsylvania house explosion; victims named, blast under investigation

A sixth person has died after a house exploded in Pennsylvania as fire officials continue to investigate the cause of the explosion, officials said Wednesday.

The Allegheny County Office of the Medical Examiner said Paul Oravitz, 56, died Wednesday at an area hospital, Plum Borough and Allegheny County officials said in a news release. 

The explosion, which occurred in Plum, Pennsylvania, about 20 miles east of Pittsburgh, has killed six people, including a child, and left several homes damaged. 

The Allegheny County Fire Marshal’s Office said it was investigating multiple possibilities, including the homeowners having “hot water tank issues,” officials said Monday.

“The tank was located in the basement of the home,” county officials said.

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Several homes damaged

Around 10:20 a.m. Saturday, Allegheny County officials received 911 calls reporting a house explosion with “multiple injuries and several houses on fire,” Allegheny County officials said in a statement provided by the Plum Police Department. 

First responders said there were people trapped under debris, two houses on fire, multiple houses damaged and it appeared “as if one house had exploded,” authorities said.  

“There are three structures destroyed and at least a dozen more damaged in some way,” authorities said.

Plum Borough Police Chief Lanny Conley said four adult bodies and a child were recovered shortly before 10:30 a.m. Saturday, The Associated Press reported.

Three people were taken to area hospitals, including one who was in critical condition and two who were treated and released. 

“This is certainly a sad, sad day and a sad time, for not just the folks in Plum but all the folks in the community and in this region,” Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said, per AP.

Pennsylvania house explosion victims identified

On Tuesday, the medical examiner’s office identified the five victims. Paul Oravitz was identified Wednesday.

• Keegan Clontz, 12
• Casey Clontz, 38
• Heather Oravitz, 51
• Kevin Sebunia, 55
• Paul Oravitz, 56
• Michael Thomas, 57

Plum neighbor said it looked like a ‘war zone'

George Emanuele, who lives three houses down from the home that exploded, said he and a neighbor went to the home after the explosion and dragged a man laying in the backyard away from the scene, he told the Tribune-Review. 

Rafal Kolankowski, who lives a few houses away, said the explosion broke the windows in his house and knocked him and his wife to the ground, he told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 

“It’s just tragic, I mean, it looks like a war zone — it looks like a bomb hit our neighborhood and it’s just unfortunate,” Kolankowski said. “I was just with some of the neighbors yesterday, right, and now this happens.”

Contributing: The Associated Press