1 year after Philadelphia gas explosion, some Nicetown residents say they "feel forgotten"

Residents in Philadelphia's Nicetown community are coming together to mark one year since a gas explosion killed one woman and injured two other people.

Starting at 10 a.m., a memorial block party is being held along the 1900 block of Bristol Street at the site of the explosion.

The event is happening as neighbors tell CBS News Philadelphia they're still processing the trauma they experienced last year.

"I've been through things in my life that no one should ever have gone through, and I've always bounced back," said Linda, who lives in the neighborhood. "But this has mentally, physically destroyed me."

The explosion on June 29, 2025, triggered the partial collapse of three rowhomes and significantly damaged at least four others, including some on Bonitz Street.

Diane Sanders owns one of the rowhomes on Bonitz Street that sustained major damage.

She finally got to move back to her home last month following major repairs.

"I heard the one comment, 'Oh, we haven't forgotten,'" Sanders recalled. "I feel forgotten."

Other homes still have boarded-up windows and exposed facades, and Sanders said illegal dumping has become a problem.

"I want to see people be neighborly to one another, be helpers of one another, just like we used to," Sanders said. "Now, it's not like this anymore. It's not like it at all. It's different."

The Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission believed the gas explosion was caused by a failure inside one of the rowhomes on the customer side of the gas meter, which would be outside the commission's jurisdiction.

Gail Pryor runs URtheKey North Philadelphia Block Captains & Community Association, which has been helping neighbors recover by connecting them with resources and offering training on how to prepare for future disasters.

"The hope that these people had has been lost," Pryor said. "You don't see anyone out here. I think that, and I feel that they have been overlooked."

Organizers view Monday's memorial block party as a chance to bring neighbors together and connect them with needed resources.

Councilmembers Cindy Bass, who represents Nicetown, and Kendra Brooks, who's from Nicetown, urged residents who need help to call their council offices or meet with staff members at Monday's event.

Monday's block party will run through 6 p.m.