4 injured, 2 unaccounted for after explosion rocks Atlanta-area apartment complex

The cause of the explosion is still under investigation.

September 12, 2021, 6:05 PM

Four people are injured and at least two people unaccounted for after an explosion rocked an apartment complex in an Atlanta suburb Sunday afternoon, first responders said.

At 1:24 p.m. the Dunwoody, Georgia, police department received a call about the explosion at the Arrive Apartments, a luxury apartment complex roughly 15 miles north of downtown Atlanta.

At least 15 to 20 units of the three-story building were damaged in the blast, Dunwoody Deputy Fire Chief Melvin Carter told reporters at a news conference Sunday afternoon. Jaeson Daniels with DeKalb County Fire Rescue told ABC News that four people were transported to the hospital with minor injuries.

Two people were unaccounted for, he said.

PHOTO: Fire crews and first responders arrive at the scene of an explosion at an apartment complex outside Atlanta, Sept. 12, 2021.
Fire crews and first responders arrive at the scene of an explosion at an apartment complex outside Atlanta, Sept. 12, 2021.
WSB

"Right now we're still searching a building, we had a lot of structural damage and structural instability to the building," Carter said.

First responders were using thermal imaging from drones to search the building, according to officials.

Daniels said that the explosion impacted three apartment units across three floors.

PHOTO: Damage to an apartment building is seen following an explosion, Sept. 12, 2021, in Dunwoody, Ga., just outside of Atlanta.
Damage to an apartment building is seen following an explosion, Sept. 12, 2021, in Dunwoody, Ga., just outside of Atlanta.
Ben Gray/AP

A leasing manager called Atlanta Gas prior to the explosion about a reported gas order, Carter said. But the cause of the explosion is still under investigation, Daniels said.

PHOTO: Fire crews and first responders arrive at the scene of an explosion at an apartment complex outside Atlanta, Sept. 12, 2021.
Fire crews and first responders arrive at the scene of an explosion at an apartment complex outside Atlanta, Sept. 12, 2021.
WSB

The utility is at the scene of the explosion, assisting first responders, Carter said. A spokeswoman Atlanta Gas Light told ABC News that the utility is cooperating with the emergency response.

The gas has been shut off in the impacted buildings, the spokeswoman said.