Firefighters respond to house explosion

Firefighters were called to Clarence Street, Burton-upon-Trent, at 6:56pm on Monday (3 January) following reports of an explosion.

Two crews from Burton attended the scene two minutes later and located a property which had been damaged by an internal explosion.

One wall had been severely damaged and had been discharged into the surrounding area.

Seven of the surrounding properties were evacuated whilst crews worked to make the area safe.

A man, in his 60s, was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation and burns where he was later conveyed to hospital for treatment.

A small area of the surrounding road surface was excavated in-order to disconnect gas pipes to nearby properties.

A structural engineer was also called in-order to assess the damage.

Crews departed the scene at 10.15pm after the area was deemed safe.

The cause is believed to have been accidental - due to a gas hob being left unattended.

In-order to protect yourselves and others whilst cooking, please consider the following safety tips:
• Look when you cook. Take any pans off the heat if you have to leave the room. If your pan does catch fire do not remove or attempt to extinguish it. Get out!
• Do not use a chip pan, use a thermostat controlled electric deep fat fryer instead
• Do not leave children alone in the kitchen whilst cooking with the hob or oven
• Do not place anything metallic in the microwave
• Keep electrical leads away from water and keep electrical leads and cloths away from the hob
• Avoid cooking if you have been drinking alcohol
• Keep the oven and grill clean, a build-up of fat and grease may catch fire
• Take care if wearing lose clothing as it can easily catch fire particularly when using the hob
• When you have finished cooking, double check that you have turned off the oven
• Do not use matches or lighters to light gas cookers. Spark devices are safer.