Authorities said the two women were hospitalized after at least three low homes in the city’s Neestown department collapsed early Sunday after the bodies were recovered and the two women were hospitalized.
The incident came around 4:48am Sunday after responding to a fire call in a part of a row home along the 1900 block of West Bristol Street.
Within ten minutes of the first call occurring, authorities confirmed the total collapse of the three rows of houses.
In a morning update, Fire Chief Assistant Charles Walker told NBC Philadelphia’s Neil Fisher the body had been recovered from the scene.
Just before 5am we responded to an explosion on Bristol Street in Neestown. This has become an all-hand response. There were two reported injuries, and sadly one has been reported to be fatal. It will be placed under control at @6:33. Many partners are still on the scene, with more information on the upcoming future. pic.twitter.com/ohshgi9any
– Phillyfiredept (@phillyfiredept) June 29, 2025
Walker said he believes he belongs to a woman and that it was recovered by the K9, which was used to conduct a search through the tile rub.
He also said he is working carefully to ensure there are no additional collapses as the crew is working on the site.
“This was a very important scene in terms of safety,” he said.
NBC10’s Neil Fisher spoke to firefighters at the scene of the low home collapse in the Neestown section of Philadelphia.
Officials also said two women, ages 82 and 63, were taken to hospital due to the incident. One was due to inhaling smoke and the other was due to burns suffered from the fire.
But officials have not yet identified further information on the injured people, but firefighters said one of the victims was listed in a critical condition and the other was stable.
In a Sunday afternoon update, City Council President Kenyatta Johnson’s representative said one of the injured women was a staff member of Johnson’s administrative office.
“She has served through the president of many councils. She is loved. We want to call her “council staff.”
The collapse could have been the result of an explosion, and a neighbor told NBC10 that he had heard a big bang when the incident happened.
“The glass was broken and pieces were flying. I didn’t know what to do. I just ran,” the neighbor said.
Another neighbor, Michelle Norland, who lives behind the fallen Low Home, said her home was also damaged.
“The dining room window was blown away,” she said. “The back door, it sinks…it basically took out the back of the house.”
Although at least one nearby home was considered structurally unhealthy after the incident, the homeowner said his focus was on families affected by the collapsed home.
“We pray for our families,” he said.
In an update Sunday around noon, Mayor Sherrell Parker said the collapse occurred as a result of the explosion, but firefighters have not confirmed that the explosion occurred.
“An explosion occurred in the 1900 block of West Bristol Street,” Parker said, asking for prayers where the neighbors on the block and the first responders were still working on the site.
Parker said she met with the victims’ families and there was a resource centre set up for families affected by the incident.
Firefighters said the incident may have been an explosion, but they are still working to determine the cause of the fire that led to the collapse.
Ten people living in the area were told to evacuate, officials said.
An investigation into this incident is still underway.
This is a broken news story. Updated when new information becomes available.
