MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The Latest on the partial school building collapse in Minneapolis that killed two, injured others (all times local):
6:20 a.m.
A contractor that was issued a permit for gas piping and meter work at a Minneapolis school where an explosion and partial collapse killed two people and injured at least seven others says its employees were among the injured.
A statement early Thursday from Master Mechanical Inc. says the company is grateful to first responders and bystanders who came to the aid of the injured, including its employees. The company did not say how many of its employees were hurt at Minnehaha Academy on Wednesday.
The Star Tribune reports that city records show Master Mechanical was issued a permit for “gas piping and hooking up meter” at the school’s address.
Fire officials said a second body was recovered from the rubble Wednesday night. The school earlier said longtime receptionist Ruth Berg died in the blast, and that janitor John Carlson was missing. Officials have not identified the second body.
The private Christian school serves students from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade.
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12:20 a.m.
Cleanup work is expected to begin one day after a deadly natural gas explosion and partial building collapse at a Minneapolis school.
Fire Chief John Fruetel says a second body was recovered from the rubble at Minnehaha Academy around 8 p.m. Wednesday. Fruetel says the medical examiner’s office was working to notify relatives.
The school earlier Wednesday said longtime receptionist Ruth Berg died in the blast, and that janitor John Carlson was missing. At a news conference Wednesday night, Fruetel didn’t specify whether Carlson’s body was the one that was located.
The fire chief says the exact cause of the explosion remains unclear. The state fire marshal’s office is assisting in the investigation.
The private Christian school serves students from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade.