A saddened community packed Wilson High School's football stadium Tuesday night to show support for the family cut down by an explosion which leveled their nearby home.
Many of the people in the crowd knew the Johnsons, were members of their church or played sports with one of the family members, or went to school with them.
It was a quiet crowd with tears visible and crying audible as an array of pastors from the community prayed with the crowd and urged them to light candles to remember 14-year-old Sarah Johnson, killed when a blast tore apart the family home early Tuesday.
Wednesday morning, volunteers will be at the house, poking through the debris and hoping to find family mementos which can be salvaged before the home is bulldozed later today.
"Everyone is really upset about it and depressed," said student Stacy Thrush, a friend of Kate Johnson who suffered severe burns in the explosion. "You feel very bad for them."
Thrush says the word spread quickly about the early morning blast, social media carrying the bad news in text messages and cell phone calls.
Maxanne Rees has a daughter who played basketball with Sarah and a son who ran track with her.
"It's very sad to see the kids have to go through something like this. She was so young and so well-liked," Rees said.
In a small town like Wilson, the grief is visible everywhere.
