Child killed, houses levelled in Lancashire ‘gas explosion’

LONDON: A young child has been killed in a “devastating” explosion which caused at least two houses to collapse and damaged several others in Lancashire.

Residents described the noise of the blast as “like a bomb going off” with debris that covered nearby streets and fields.

Lancashire Police said they were called to the scene of the explosion in Heysham at 2.40am on Sunday after reports that “a number” of houses on Mallowdale Avenue had collapsed. The force later confirmed the death of a child and said four people had been injured, two seriously.

It is suspected the damage was caused by a gas explosion.

Lancashire Fire said on Twitter that 10 units had been called to the terraced row and firefighters were searching a collapsed property.

Speaking to reporters at the scene, Joe Edwards, Assistant Chief Constable of Lancashire Police, said: “Shortly after 2.40am this morning emergency services were called to residential properties following reports of a large explosion at the address.

“There is significant damage to the houses, at least two have been destroyed and a third is significantly damaged. As a consequence of that a number of people have been injured.

“Tragically a young child has been killed as a consequence of what has happened and the thoughts of myself and all the emergency services are with the family at what is a distressing time. “The information as we know it is that there are four persons that have also been injured in the incident, two of which are seriously injured and two others who remain under medical assessment.”

Resident Susan Faulkner, 74, who lives further down Mallowdale Avenue, told the PA news agency that the blast was “like a bomb going off” and that she was still “shaken” by the incident. Ms Faulkner said that her own property and others in the immediate area had been damaged in the “devastating” explosion.

Dan Knowles, who lives four streets away from the explosion, said he thought there had been an earthquake. “We immediately checked on our kids and got back in bed. We then heard sirens and my wife checked Facebook, when we found out that there’d been a gas explosion. We stayed indoors and switched everything off at the source and then sat up all night worrying.”

A Gofundme page set up to help Mallowdale Avenue residents had reached more than £10,000 by 11am on Sunday morning. Electricity North West wrote on social media that it had paused electricity supplies to the area for safety reasons while the blast was being investigated.