BEAUMONT, Texas — A 57-year-old Beaumont man is dead following an explosion and fire early Thursday morning at a home in Beaumont.
City of Beaumont firefighters responded at about 4 a.m. Thursday to a home in the 2100 block of Rusk St. according to dispatch records.
An explosion and fire destroyed the home according to a Beaumont Fire Department spokesperson.
John Allen Hall, 57, of Beaumont, who was inside the home at the time of the fire was taken by ambulance to a Beaumont hospital where he later died according to a news release from the Beaumont Police Department.
Nearby neighbors described the explosion as a loud boom.
The noise was so loud, residents at first assumed it came from a nearby chemical plant exploding. They later learned the noise came from Hall's home exploding.
Hall lived in a duplex that he shared with another man, Charles Kelley. Kelley was able to escape the explosion unharmed.
Those who witnessed the deadly incident said the fire spread quickly and destroyed two homes. One home that was damaged during the incident was that of Glendell Goodman.
“Next thing we know, it was fully engulfed his house and those two poles right there,” Goodman said. “And I came out and looked at the side of my house and I said, ‘Oh lord, I just bought all this stuff.’ I lost everything.”
When neighbors ran outside, they saw Hall. The 57-year-old man had flames all over his arms.
They attempted to help him before things went from bad to worse.
“By the time I came out, he was across the street, and you can tell he was in pretty bad condition,” Goodman said. “We took him over here set him down waited for the ems and fire trucks were here, and I don't know it's wild it was a wild situation."
Neighbors suspect a gas leak may be to blame, but investigators are still trying to figure out what happened
GET NEWS & WEATHER ALERTS | Download the 12News App to your mobile device
This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.
From a Beaumont Police Department news release...
On Thursday, October 13, 2022 at 4:01 a.m., Beaumont Police responded to a residence in the 2100 block of Rusk in reference to assisting Beaumont Fire Rescue with a house fire call.
A victim who was inside the residence at the time of the fire was transported to a local hospital where he later died. The victim has been identified as John Allen Hall a 57 year old Beaumont resident. Beaumont Fire Investigators are working with BPD Detectives to investigate the incident.