The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Man killed in suspected gas blast which razed his house
Emergency: More than a dozen homes damaged in Yorkshire explosion
More than a dozen houses have been damaged in an explosion that claimed the life of a man in Haxby, near York, police said yesterday.
A 63- year- old man, named locally as Paul Wilmott, died after a suspected gas explosion obliterated the houseonSpringwood yesterday morning.
Inspector Steve Breen of North Yorkshire Police said the man’s next of kin have been informed and officers are supporting members of his family.
He said it is an isolated incident, there are not believed to be any suspicious circumstances, and a gas explosion is thought to be the cause.
Inspector Breen said: “We are grateful of the support and patience of residents here, because there
“The man’s body has now been recovered from the home”
has been a great deal of disturbance in the street.”
The man’s body has now been recovered from the home destroyed in the blast. Police said that to the best of their knowledge there was only one person at the address. Formal identification is yet to take place. A cordon around the affected area is expected to be lifted soon.
“Both properties either side are quite badly damaged,” said a North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue representative at the scene.
He described the affected property as a “pile of rubble at the moment. It has all the signs of a gas explosion but we cannot confirm that until we get the investigation under way.”
The fire service will also be working with structural engineers to ascertain if the properties either side of the destroyed home are at risk of collapse themselves.
Emergency services are looking to isolate the gas supply. Currently the electricity board have switched off power within a 200-metre radius of the incident.
Officers will be working with Northern Gas Networks to investigate the cause of the incident.