Videos Show Destruction Near The West, Texas Explosion

Michael Kelley

The sheer damage caused by a fertilizer plant explosion Wednesday night is becoming clearer.

The blast, a 2.1 on the Richter scale, shook homes as far as 50 miles away and leveled most things in its immediate vicinity.

One video of the aftermath comes from a couple driving through the town who had no idea what had happened — and were told by one woman that a plane had crashed.

"Oh my god people's houses are on fire," the woman said. "All right let's get the hell out of here," The man replies.

On Thursday morning Dallas area journalist David Schechter toured the area, and found the remnants of that house.

He points out the bathtub and that water heater:

Witnesses also described how an apartment complex and retirement home near the blast were badly damaged.

Here's the apartment complex:

After speaking with this hysterical woman, the man holding the camera says, "Yeah, this was not your average meth lab blowing up.""

Here's the retirement home, where more than 130 people were rescued.

Here's the witness video:

And here's Schechter's report: