Durham Businessman Killed in North Carolina Gas Explosion

Firefighters and emergency officials respond to an explosion and fire in downtown Durham, North Carolina, on April 10, 2019. WTVD-TV ABC 11 via AP

A North Carolina community is mourning the loss of a well-connected businessman after a gas explosion rocked the city.

Durham Police Department has identified Kong Lee, 61, as the only confirmed death from the April 10 blast that destroyed an entire building in downtown Durham, 143 miles northeast of Charlotte.

Lee owned the Kaffeinate coffee shop, which was at the epicenter of the explosion that has been traced back to a contractor drilling under a sidewalk. The work breached a 2-inch gas line, triggering a gas leak, according to a police statement. However, the exact cause of the blast is still under investigation.

Durham Fire Chief Robert Zoldos described the ruins as an unpleasant reminder of what the Pentagon looked like on 9/11.

The gas explosion hospitalized 17 people, with six in critical condition. According to the city, 11 people were transported to Duke University Medical Center and a further four to Duke Regional Hospital. Among the injured was a Dominion Energy employee and also Durham firefighter Darren Wheeler who had surgery and is now recovering.

Durham County Emergency Medical Services Assistant Chief Lee Van Vleet confirmed the injuries were sustained after the building partially collapsed and set on fire.

Professional Firefighters of Durham (PFD) announced on social media their colleague was in good spirits.

“Our brother is out of the operating room and doing well. Keep the prayers coming for a quick and full recovery, thank you all,” PFD wrote in a Facebook post on April 10. “In true firefighter fashion, our brother is cutting up and in good spirits.”

Police asked the public to stay away from the area due to safety concerns and that affected residents would receive temporary accommodation.

“West Village-Toms Building is not habitable at this time. Residents who need a place to stay can visit Dominion Energy’s Claims Operations Center located at Maverick’s Smokehouse and Taproom (900 W. Main Street) to get a hotel voucher,” Police Public Affairs Manager Wil Glenn wrote on Twitter. “The claims center will be open until 11 p.m. It will reopen at 8 a.m. on April 11. Also, Gregson Street has been reopened.”

Staff and students at the nearby Durham School of the Arts were temporarily evacuated after the explosion. Classes were dismissed for April 10. According to the school’s website there are an estimated 1,700 students in grades 6 through 12 and more than 135 teachers and counselors.

Police cars blocked the streets in several directions from the explosion, a thick smoked loomed over a shopping district, and helicopters circled overhead.

Witness Donna Hester told WRAL-TV the morning explosion sounded like a bomb, reported The Associated Press. Another witness, Kelly Andrus, thought the tremor was from an earthquake at first, but when she looked outside her workplace, she realized it was the West Village-Toms Building from which deep, black smoke was billowing.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.