Dilworth neighbors plead for answers a week after home explosion rocked street
One week ago, residents in a Dilworth neighborhood were suddenly awakened when a home exploded on their street.
The Charlotte Fire Marshal said it was done intentionally, but an arrest hasn’t been announced. And the lot where the explosion occurred remains a pile of brick and rubble, taped off by law enforcement.
Some neighbors living nearby said they have more questions than answers since the home at 1645 Lombardy Circle exploded on May 2.
Who did this? And why? When will we get an update from law enforcement? Where are city leaders? Who is going to clean up the rubble? Is it safe for us to have our annual street party next week?
“Everybody’s stressed, traumatized, extraordinarily disappointed with city leadership on so many levels,” said Anne Gray, who lives close to the site of the explosion with her husband, Jeff.
The couple were in England when the explosion happened, learning about it from a neighbor who called them.
“Since that time, we’ve been meeting, of course, with everybody in the neighborhood and learning what we can about what happened,” Jeff Gray said.
The Charlotte Fire Department said no one was inside the home when it exploded and caught fire. A neighbor and a firefighter had minor injuries. The two-alarm fire caused $445,000 in property damage and content loss and damaged two homes on either side of the lot.
Curt Sowers and his husband, who lived in one of the homes next door to the explosion, were told their home was condemned after it was knocked off of its foundation by the blast. Sowers’s husband was cut after glass from a window shattered by the explosion blew across the room and hit him.
Unsanswered questions about explosion
Jeff Gray said he and his wife, who spoke with The Charlotte Observer on Wednesday, as well as others from the neighborhood, have attempted to contact city leaders for answers. And attempts to see if the city has plans to clean up the rubble left from the explosion have proven fruitless as well, he said.
Neighbors aren’t just concerned about the sight of the debris, he said, but what could be washed away from it into nearby Sugar Creek when it rains. They’re worried cleanup will take years.
The couple said they have also been disappointed by the lack of communication from the city about the investigation.
“We’re all in speculation mode, which is never good for anybody,” Jeff Gray said.
Although residents understand the police can’t give them all the information they are looking for, a confirmation that police are “all over this” would be reassuring, Jeff Gray said.
Without any arrests made, Anne Gray said she and others are concerned about whether the neighborhood can safely have its annual street party, which she and her husband started hosting when they moved in several years ago.
Wednesday evening, Anne Gray spoke on behalf of the residents of Lombardy Circle at a Dilworth Community Association meeting at the Morehead Inn on East Morehead Street.
Describing the explosion and how it impacted her and her neighbors, Anne Gray pleaded with the neighborhood association to help the residents at Lombardy Circle.
“A house, literally a solid brick house, exploded,” she said. “The debris went flying across the street … two homes on either side were condemned. Two of our beloved neighbors could have easily been killed.”
She asked them to call city leaders about moving quickly to clean up the site and repair the street.
“We don’t want to talk anymore … We don’t want to be told we need to talk to one more individual, because we know how that goes,” she said. “What I’m asking of you, my neighbors in the Dilworth community, is to please contact city council and the mayor and ask them — demand — that they support, at this point, Lombardy.”
When she finished speaking the room was silent. She stepped out to speak with CMPD Officer Ronald Hill, who is a community coordinator for the area and who spoke at the meeting.
She also asked if he, or another officer from CMPD, could attend the street party on May 17 to help neighbors feel safe.
Before the meeting started, Jennifer Flynn, president of the neighborhood association, said the association “will support our community however we can.”
But she said the association needed to make sure “we respect the investigation and kind of follow that process.”
One couple said they would be willing to call their city council representative if that would be helpful, while another man said he probably wouldn’t.
Anne Gray said that while the neighborhood is concerned no arrest has been made, she intended to have the annual party. She wants to show her neighbors support.
“This is a time to get together,” she said.
This story was originally published May 9, 2025 at 1:49 PM.
