A body has been recovered and two women have been hospitalized after, officials said, after a fire caused at least three rowhomes in the city’s Nicetown section to collapse early Sunday.
According to police, the incident happened after crews responded to a call for a fire at a section of row homes along the 1900 block of West Bristol Street at about 4:48 a.m. on Sunday.
Less than 10 minutes after the initial call went out, officials confirmed the total collapse of three row homes.
In a morning update, Assistant Fire Chief Charles Walker told NBC Philadelphia’s Neil Fischer that a body was recovered from the scene.
Just before 5am, we responded to an explosion on Bristol St. in Nicetown. This became an all-hands response. There are 2 reported injuries and sadly, one reported fatality. Placed under control @ 6:33. Many partners still on scene & more info to come. pic.twitter.com/oHSHGi9ANY
— Philadelphia Fire (@PhillyFireDept) June 29, 2025The remains, that Walker said he believed belonged to a woman, were recovered by a K9 that was being used to do a search through the rubble.
Also, he said, crews are working carefully to ensure that there isn’t an additional collapse as crews work at the scene.
“This has been a very critical scene in regards to safety,” he said.
Also, officials said, two women, an 82-year-old and a 63-year-old, were taken to the hospital due to the incident — one due to smoke inhalation and the other because of burns she suffered in this fire.
However, officials have not yet provided further identifying information on those hurt, but a fire official said one of the victims was listed in critical condition and the other was stable.
In a Sunday afternoon update, a representative of City Council President Kenyatta Johnson said one of the injured women is a staffer in Johnson’s administrative office.
“She has served through many council presidents. She is beloved. We like to call her the ‘council staffer at large’ because when you work for the council president’s office you work for everybody,” communications director for City Council, Vincent Thompson told NBC10.
Also, the collapse may have been the result of an explosion, as neighbors told NBC10 that they heard a loud bang when the incident occurred.
“Glass was breaking, debris was flying. I didn’t know what to do. I just took off running,” a neighbor said.
Another neighbor, Michelle Noland, who lives behind the collapsed rowhomes, said her home has also been damaged.
“Dining room window blown out,” she said. “Back door, sink… it took out the back of the house basically.”
At least one other home nearby was deemed structurally unsound following the incident, but the owner of that home said his focus was on the families impacted by the collapsed homes.
“We are praying for the family,” he said.
In an update at about noon on Sunday, Mayor Cherelle Parker said the collapses happened as the result of an explosion, although fire officials have not confirmed an explosion took place.
“An explosion occurred on the 1900 block of West Bristol Street,” said Parker, calling for prayer for the neighbors on the block and the first responders still working at the scene.
Parker said she has met with the families of victims and said that there is a resource center set up for families impacted by this incident.
Fire officials said the incident seems there may have been an explosion, but they are still working to determine the cause the fire that led to the collapse.
Ten people who live in the area have been told to evacuate, officials said.
An investigation into this incident is still ongoing.
This is a breaking news story. It will be updated as new information becomes available.
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