Looking at the Dawson home off Texas Highway 31, it appears the only things left untouched by the explosion are the house number and the carport.
The damage continued across the street at the First Assembly of God.
Monday, worshippers turned into construction workers by fixing windows that were blown out of the church.
“God wasn’t across the street last night, he was over here!” said Richard Rains, who lives down the road from the explosion.
“I mean, as big a boom, and you can see the wreckage of the house, it’s a miracle they come out in one piece,” said Rains.
Rains was one of the first people to arrive after the blast.
“I turned in there [to the house], shined my headlights, got out, and tried to see if I could find anybody. Found two in that front room there,” Rains said.
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Among the five people trapped inside the home were the homeowners, Dwain and Cathy Spruiell.
“Has anybody heard how Dwain and Cathy are doing?” asked a man passing by, who also helped with the rescue Sunday night into Monday morning.
Dawson Police Chief Michael Carter said the Spruiells are in stable condition.
A friend of the Spruiell family also said Dwain and Cathy have numerous broken bones.
Soon after the blast, more and more people arrived to help with the rescue— including first responders and firefighters from several different departments.
“Pried the window out and got them out,” said Rains, about the first two people they found. “It was a couple firefighters jumped in there and helped them get out.”
Rains said, with a team effort, all five people trapped inside were rescued.
“It was pretty hair-raising there for a little bit, you know. Not knowing you’re going to find them alive or dead, that’s the worst part. But luckily everybody was found, everybody was alive, everybody got saved, you know?” said Rains.
NBC 5 asked Carter what went through his mind as he pulled up to the house Sunday night.
“I was praying there weren’t any casualties. I’m very happy to say that everybody was out and they are all alive. Looking at this, it’s amazing what God can do. So we all prayed and so they’re out — that’s good,” Carter said.
Carter also updated the investigation into what caused the blast. He said they’ll need to take the roof off of the house to allow investigators to get in and safely take a closer look. It could be a week until they know the exact cause.
We’re also learning more about the conditions of the family inside that home. They range in age from their late 60s to late 80s. Dwain Spruiell and his wife, Cathy Spruiell, are in Dallas’ Parkland Memorial Hospital in stable condition, along with Cathy’s sister Margaret Rowland, of McKinney.
William Gilcoat and his wife, Sandra Gilcoat, of Houston, have been treated and released from the hospital. Rowland and the Gilcoats were visiting the Spruiells when the home exploded.
