When she opened the front door to the street, Rifai saw the home her neighbour has lived in for 20 years was destroyed.
"The whole top of the house was completely blown off and there were all of these people coming out of the house," Rifai said in an interview Tuesday outside her home in the neighbourhood east of downtown.
"There was a gentleman actually right between these two vehicles here. You could tell after the explosion he had made it out first and he was just wandering the streets in absolute shock."
The explosion also damaged several other homes and sent part of the roof of the house that blew up into a yard across the street.
Calgary Emergency Medical Services has said all the victims were adults. Six had life-threatening injuries and four were seriously hurt.
Rifai and her neighbours rushed to help other victims exit the home.
"We brought him over to safety, sat him down in a chair, wrapped him in blankets and it actually got more hectic after that," she said.
"It started with smoke and then flames and it just exploded into a huge fire. As we were trying to get them out one by one. Even one of the neighbours got set on fire actually trying to get them out. It was just surreal."
Rifai said the injuries were severe.
"We were trying to get blankets on them and just comfort them and give them some support. The skin was peeling off of every part of the body that we could actually wrap up," she said.
"I feel thankful that there were no lives taken and at the same time, I am sad for them. It's sad. It's really sad."
A pile of debris including discarded blankets remained on Rifai's lawn. She said fire officials spent the night near the home, watching for hot spots.
A fire insurance investigator and Calgary fire officials were still going through the wreckage Five vehicles were parked nearby. The rear window of a minivan was blown out.
Gar Gar, a leader in Calgary's South Sudanese community, said efforts were being made to provide financial help to those who were injured.
He said it appears all of the victims are from South Sudan. He and some of the victims' family members met at one of the hospitals where the injured were taken.
"I met a son who came to the hospital and went in and saw his dad and you could see the tears in his eyes. That sounds like it's related to something that he saw and the shape his father is in," Gar said.
"There are family members, cousins, uncles and their nephews and nieces. Eventually, those will be the houses that some of them, when they get out of the hospital, might also be hoping to get back in."
Gar said after hearing about the explosion and seeing its aftermath, he can't believe no one died.
"To hear that they're still fighting for their lives and some of them are stable _ that by itself is a miracle and we give thanks for the responders who came in and took them so quick," he said.
Gar said if all 10 victims were living inside the home, he wants to know why.
"We're hoping to rally around those families and the community to come together and to support them where we can."
The cause of the explosion is still under investigation but the Calgary Fire Department said in a statement that it was likely related to a natural gas leak.
"(The CFD) has sent equipment pulled from the home for investigation by a third party. Results from the investigation will not be available for a few weeks," it said in a statement Wednesday.
"The explosion completely destroyed the source home and caused damage to at least eight other homes nearby, as well as vehicles that were parked in proximity to the home."
The incident is not believed to be criminal in nature.
A GoFundMe campaign has also been established to help the victims of the explosion.
Canada's special rapporteur on foreign interference David Johnston will be questioned by MPs at committee Tuesday morning, about his role, his report into election meddling, his decision against a public inquiry, and allegations of a conflict of interest.
Prince Harry entered a courtroom witness box Tuesday, swearing to tell the truth in testimony against a tabloid publisher he accuses of phone hacking and other unlawful snooping.
Canada's emergency preparedness minister says images of wildfires burning across the country are some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity.
Many Canadian parents are stretching themselves thin — even going as far as to postpone their retirement in some cases — in order to help pay for their children’s education, according to a new survey.
The wall of a major dam in a part of southern Ukraine that Moscow controls collapsed Tuesday, triggering floods, endangering Europe's largest nuclear power plant and threatening drinking water supplies as both sides in the war rushed to evacuate residents and blamed each other for the emergency.
Police in Australia are investigating the suspicious death of a woman who used to live in Surrey, BC, after her body was found in her apartment on the outskirts of Sydney.
Pope Francis briefly went to Rome's main hospital on Tuesday for tests and returned to the Vatican, two months after he was hospitalized with an acute case of bronchitis.
Astrud Gilberto, the Brazilian singer, songwriter and entertainer whose off-hand, English-language cameo on 'The Girl from Ipanema' made her a worldwide voice of bossa nova, has died at age 83.
Canada’s housing market saw the largest improvement in affordability in nearly four years in the first quarter of 2023, according to a report from economists at the National Bank of Canada.
Canada's emergency preparedness minister says images of wildfires burning across the country are some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity.
Edmonton police launched a new tool Monday to encourage reports of "hate incidents," something officers believe will help them track people who may escalate to "hate crimes."
Many Canadian parents are stretching themselves thin — even going as far as to postpone their retirement in some cases — in order to help pay for their children’s education, according to a new survey.
The provincial wildfire service is warning British Columbians to have a go-bag and make an evacuation plan with this year's wildfire season off to an alarming start.
Real estate experts say B.C.’s housing market is heating back after cooling off due to rising interest rates but the future is uncertain as several economists expect the Bank of Canada to hike rates again.
Police in Australia are investigating the suspicious death of a woman who used to live in Surrey, BC, after her body was found in her apartment on the outskirts of Sydney.
Canada's emergency preparedness minister says images of wildfires burning across the country are some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity.
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Capital Pride will be receiving money from the federal government to cover costs of added security measures at this year's Pride parade and other events.
Flames and smoke could be seen shooting out of a home on Graham Street in Waterloo shortly after midnight on Monday, creating a scene that firefighters say was intense before they arrived.
A report going before regional councillors on Tuesday will recommend beginning the process of environmental remediation at the former Charles Street bus terminal in Kitchener.
While Saskatoon Tribal Council (STC) publicly mulled moving its downtown emergency shelter to a location on 20th Street near the city's core, city documents reveal the wellness centre's present Fairhaven area location was heavily favoured early in the process.
Canada's emergency preparedness minister says images of wildfires burning across the country are some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity.
A grieving widow whose husband was run over and killed by a speeding OPP officer can't believe the force told her it won't hold a public hearing into the case because it decided the misconduct was 'not serious.'
Canada's emergency preparedness minister says images of wildfires burning across the country are some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity.
Officials are asking people living around Centennial Lake to evacuate their homes as a forest fire burns in the area west of Calabogie, Ont. An evacuation order has been extended to Wednesday afternoon.
A Ukrainian woman who now lives in Winnipeg is hoping one day she will be able to bring her husband's remains to her new home, a place he hoped one day he too would be able to call home.
Manitoba Public Insurance is suing the Manitoba government, a Manitoba construction company and an unidentified employee for more than $31,000 saying road work damaged 12 vehicles in 2021.
Canada's emergency preparedness minister says images of wildfires burning across the country are some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity.
