Crews find propane tank at site of Pottstown home explosion that left 4 children, grandmother dead
POTTSTOWN, Pa. (CBS) – Now for an Eyewitness News exclusive. Only CBS3 was there in Montgomery County Monday as crews recovered a propane tank from the site of a Pottstown home explosion.
Five people, including four children, were killed back in May.
On Monday, several families who were forced out of their homes are now doing their own independent investigations. That's why many of these crews are on the scene.
And that tank looks like the focus of much of the investigation.
Meanwhile, this neighborhood looks similar as it did back in May, with streets closed off and homes in disrepair.
On Monday, experts for the homeowners impacted by the Pottstown home explosion that happened in May were finally allowed to survey the damage left behind.
The blast killed a grandmother and her four grandchildren. And it displaced at least a half dozen homeowners like Sharon Thomas.
"We're not going to be going back into our home, it's a total loss," Thomas said.
The blast also destroyed Kenneth Cotton's home.
"It's been real rough because it's like everything I worked for went down the drain for the time being," Cotton said.
There's no word on if the propane tank crews recovered from the explosion site was involved in the blast. Crews used a device to test the tank and took photos of it.
In fact, the neighborhood still does not have an official cause of the explosion.
"Everyone in the area wants answers," Attorney Jordan Strokovsky, who represents about 20 clients who suffered property damage or physical injuries from the blast.
CBS3's Petrillo: "Do you have any idea what might have caused it?"
Strokovsky: "We suspect, in all likelihood, it's gas related. But the reason why we're here today and will be here for however long it takes is to get more details and to figure out what happened."
Tandra Rambert said she is among those injured.
"Everyone in this neighborhood can tell you that there has been a gas smell at the end of that corner and nothing has ever been done," Rambet said.
A PECO spokesperson tells me there is no evidence that they caused the incident.
Meanwhile, the ATF is investigating along with Pottstown police, but there is no timeline on when it might finish.
