Gas leak worries, Waco standoff 25 years later, 5G in Dallas: Your Wednesday morning roundup

February 28,  2018 By Holly Rusak Good morning! Here is a look at the top headlines as we start the day. 🌦️ Weather: Rain and thunderstorms, possibly severe. High: near 75 degrees 🔎 Prefer the online view? It's [here](. Concerned citizens raise their hands to speak at a crowded town hall meeting to address the concerns of people who are effected by Atmos Energy gas leaks on Tuesday at Foster Elementary in Dallas. (Ashley Landis/Staff Photographer) Northwest Dallas Worried about gas leaks after deadly blast, residents demand answers from Atmos Energy A meeting quickly turned contentious Tuesday night when [northwest Dallas residents worried about their safety voiced their fears and frustrations to city and Atmos Energy officials](. It's still unclear whether the explosion is connected to a gas leak that prompted the evacuation of a nearby apartment complex Sunday, or two house fires on a neighboring street earlier in the week. Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesman Jason Evans said the department couldn't say whether the incidents were connected — that's part of the investigation, he said — but they believe those events were gas-related. Atmos Energy's director of public affairs, Jennifer Altieri, told the neighbors that while she would provide them with as much information as possible, questions about what led to the explosion would have to be answered by the National Transportation Safety Board. Meanwhile: A [fire station was evaculated Tuesday night after at gas leak]( was detected in the same northwest Dallas neighborhood where a house exploded. Be prepared: [What causes gas explosions? What can homeowners do to avoid them?]( Home explosion: [Neighbors say they had smelled gas prior to the fatal home explosion that killed a 12-year-old girl](. A photo taken by Dan Weyenberg for the McLennan County Sheriff's Department showing the Branch Davidian compound near Waco before the standoff and siege in 1993. (Dan Weyenberg/McLennan County Sheriff's Department) Waco Standoff: 25 years later How it began with a bloody gunbattle that federal agents now regret It's Feb. 28, 1993, and [two trucks with cattle trailers carry them and 72 other agents of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms into the worst firefight in U.S. law enforcement history](. Before the morning was over, four ATF agents would be dead and 17 wounded. Inside the Branch Davidian stronghold, two people would be killed by ATF; others would be wounded and three would be finished off by other followers of the sect's prophet, David Koresh. Koresh, himself wounded, would tell followers it was the final confrontation he'd foretold: They would kill and die for God and return with him, the Lamb of God, to judge the world. There would be a painful reckoning for ATF and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. ATF's raid and an ensuing 51-day standoff managed by the FBI ended with the fiery deaths of Koresh and more than 70 followers. It prompted lawsuits, Congressional hearings, an independent counsel's investigation, and conspiracy theories about government and guns. Today, ATF agents say the raid should have been called off. There were failures of surveillance and intelligence. ATF's leaders were blind to warning signs that the raid's secrecy was fatally compromised. Facts from myths: [Here's key information about what started the standoff](. 51 days under siege: [A timeline of the Branch Davidian standoff](. From the archives: While Waco's Branch Davidian compound siege raged on, [hawkers and opportunists swarmed](. A 5G antenna at Deutsche Telekom stand on the first day of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) on February 26, 2018 in Barcelona. The Mobile World Congress, the world's biggest mobile fair, is in Barcelona from Feb. 26 to March 1. (Pau Berrena/AFP/Getty Images) TELECOMMUNICATIONS AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile making Dallas their high-speed battleground Dallas is shaping up to be a competitive testing ground for 5G — the faster, more reliable fifth-generation wireless network that promises to speed up smartphones and support the growing number of connected devices at home. On Tuesday at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, [T-Mobile and Sprint said that Dallas will be among the first cities where they'll build]( the infrastructure for 5G.  The announcements came a week after AT&T said Dallas will be among the dozen markets where the company will roll out mobile 5G by the end of 2018. At the event, T-Mobile's chief technology officer Neville Ray said Tuesday  that the carrier is adding 5G infrastructure in 30 cities this year. Customers in Dallas, New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas will be the first to experience the faster network when 5G smartphones arrive in early 2019. Starting in April, Sprint said, it will start rolling out an advanced antenna technology — called Massive MIMO — so that Dallas is 5G-ready in early 2019. It's also rolling out the technology in Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Washington, D.C. Technology: Featured speaker [Mark Cuban canceled his scheduled appearance at SXSW](. Conscious uncoupling: [Papa John's is out as the official pizza of NFL](, but will continue team sponsorships. Looking to April 15: [Is your tax refund a windfall or a lifeline?]( Advertisement (Tom Fox/Staff Photographer) Photo of the Morning From the archives: Three years ago, Lori Ashmore Peters slid down a hill with her daughter Alexa, then 8, along North Buckner Boulevard at Mockingbird Lane in Dallas. Today, expect thunderstorms and rain that could help us top the record for second wettest February. [Get today's forecast from our news partners at KXAS-TV (NBC5)](. Around The Site - Snubbed no more: President Donald [Trump tweets support]( for Texas GOP incumbents. - 'We're the experts': Dallas ISD students gather to offer [opinions on school safety and gun violence](. - Hard out there for a gardener: These plants [add tropical color to your garden and tolerate Texas summers](. - All about the Benjamins: [George P. Bush maintains a big fundraising lead]( in the heated race for Texas land commissioner. - Fighting back: A former Arlington elementary school teacher was in court Monday over an [accusation that she smacked a kindergartner's arm]( during class. - Murder charge: A [Texas doctor killed a couple on his family compound]( while their kids watched, authorities said. - Commentary: How one Pennsylvania congressional [race could topple Nancy Pelosi](, writes Carl P. Leubsdorf, former Washington bureau chief March primary elections - Who's on the ballot? [Compare candidates in the March primary election with our Voter Guide](. - Who we recommend: In the [Republican primary]( and in the [Democratic primary](. - Why they run: [Behind the boom in Texas women vying for Congress](. - Early voting: [Here's what you need to know]( before early voting ends Friday. - Where to early vote: [Polling places in Dallas, Collin, Denton, Rockwall and Tarrant counties](. Julia Scott Reed, Dallas Morning News columnist, on Feb. 5, 1975. (DMN File) Finally... Remembering Julia Scott Reed, the first black journalist at The Dallas Morning News Julia Scott Reed, born in 1918, wrote the column, "The Open Line" for The Dallas Morning News from 1967 until 1978. She was a Dallas native who began her 28-year career  in 1950 as a reporter for the Texas edition of the Kansas City Call. She later became a reporter and editor at the Dallas Express. On Dec. 25, 1968, the second year she wrote for The News, Reed received many "letters of commendation, gratitude, and suggestions" from readers that would often inform her column. As a result of this tremendous community engagement, she wrote that her column was able to connect people to employment, inspire involvement in a local blood drive when there was a blood shortage, and recruit volunteers for charity events. In that same year, she helped more than six black foster children get placed in adoptive homes after writing a column about the many black children in the Dallas foster system who were having difficulty finding placement with adoptive families. AdVERTISEMENT 👋 That's all for this morning! For up-to-the-minute news and analysis, check out [DallasNews.com](. 💖 Share the love! If you like this newsletter, please forward this email to a friend and [check out our other newsletters here](. 📧 Do you have feedback? 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