1 person dead in Oneonta house explosion, town delcares State of Emergency

ONEONTA, NY (WBNG) -- UPDATE: The incident at 18 Richards Ave. is considered to be accidental and occurred as a result of human error.

The resident who died was 60-year-old Desmond D. Moan.

Residents affected by this event who require housing can contact the Otsego County Office of Emergency Services at 607-547-5351.

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One person has died following a house explosion in the Town of Oneonta on Dec. 9, according to the Otsego County Sheriff.

Officials said another neighboring resident was treated for minor injuries.

The Town of Oneonta has also declared a State of Emergency for a portion of the town which will be in effect until 9:00 p.m. on Dec. 14.

In a Facebook post officials said, “The State of Emergency shall be in effect for all properties within the area bounded by Winney Hill Road to the west, Blanchard Avenue/Butler Street to the north, Jackson Avenue/Madison Avenue/Murdock Avenue to the east and Chestnut Street to the south.”

Residence will have to be escorted to their homes by a NYSEG representative, according to the Facebook post.

According to the sheriff, the Otsego County 911 Center began receiving calls about the possible home explosion at around 5:28 p.m. on Saturday. Once they arrived at the scene, multiple residences were damaged and there was an active structure fire.

Sheriff officials said the cause of the fire remains under investigation and the New York State Office of Fire Prevention and Control will be the lead agency during this investigation.