911 caller warns of gas leak before fatal Wisconsin blast

SUN PRAIRIE, Wis. (AP) – Recordings show that a construction worker called 911 to warn he could smell and hear a leak from a broken gas main just before a massive explosion killed a firefighter and destroyed six buildings in southern Wisconsin.

The worker told the dispatcher, “it’s bad,” after explaining a main had been struck in downtown Sun Prairie, near Madison.

The call was among more than two dozen 911 calls that dispatchers received on the night of the July 10 explosion. Officials released recordings of the calls Tuesday. They redacted the worker’s name.

Another caller said there was smoke coming from a house that looked like it had blown up.

Police said Wednesday that they don’t have a timetable for deciding whether to recommend that prosecutors should file criminal charges over the blast.