Full Notification

Sun Prairie Police Department Media Release
From: Lieutenant Kevin Konopacki
Date: July 11, 2018
Subject: Sun Prairie Gas Leak Explosion


***UPDATE***

The Madison Fire Department’s Heavy Urban Rescue Team (HURT) is now in the process of going through the area of the damaged buildings to do a more extensive secondary search for any possible victims. They will also be evaluating the structural integrity of the damaged buildings.

I want to reiterate we have no calls of any missing persons in that area.

Furthermore, people who were evacuated are now being allowed back into their homes once their home has been cleared by a We Energies representative.

That means that the perimeter established will continue to break down as more people are moved back into their homes.

More updates will be provided as they become available.

***UPDATE July 12, 2018 AT 3:52***

Investigative crews along with fire departments assets, city engineering and building inspection have been working on decreasing the perimeter of the blast area to allow business owners and residents to gather property and to secure their buildings from damage that was done as a result of the explosion.

Please find attached a map where a security fence has been erected to protect the area deemed to still be under investigation and unsafe for public access. The green area is the location of that security fence. The perimeter outside the security fenced area will be protected by law enforcement personnel. Furthermore, those areas marked on the map in purple will be open only for local traffic and not through traffic with the exception of the 200 block of East Main Street where there will be no vehicle traffic allowed.


Residents have been allowed to return to their homes outside of the security fence perimeter. No residents or business owners are allowed access inside the security fence perimeter without first requesting entrance. Those requests can be made by calling Sun Prairie Police Department’s non-emergency phone number at 608-837-7336 and those requests will be evaluated by on-site safety personnel.

This continues to be an active death investigation and additional details will be made available when they are able to be released.


***UPDATE July 23, 2018***

The Sun Prairie Police Department and the State Fire Marshal’s office continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the July 10th gas leak explosion. On-site processing and evidence collection in the secured fencing area has been completed and law enforcement has released the scene to the city’s Building Inspector and Public Works Director.

The City of Sun Prairie will now initiate efforts to ensure that the area is safe and as accessible as possible. The city’s Building Inspector and Public Works Director have determined that significant safety concerns still exist and that the area will remain restricted until it is deemed safe. Property owners may contact the Building Inspection Department at (608) 825-1184 to request access. Please refer to the City of Sun Prairie’s website at www.cityofsunprairie.com to obtain further information and resources that are available.