Man pulled from rubble after ‘gas blast’ razes home
A MAN was taken to hospital yesterday after a suspected gas blast destroyed his home.
Shocked locals in Larbert, Falkirk, heard a deafening explosion at lunchtime – then raced out to see a house engulfed in flames.
A man, named locally as Darren Graham, was found inside the partially collapsed building after police, firefighters and ambulance crews attended at Broomage Crescent.
The neighbourhood was later evacuated and cordoned off.
Locals were shocked by the explosion and the extent of the damage. One said: ‘I’ve never heard a boom like it. I was walking back home with the dogs and the next thing there was this almighty bang and smash.
‘I heard screaming and saw smoke billowing into the air.
‘Loads of people came running out from their houses looking terrified.’
Another neighbour said: ‘The bang was massive. It was like something out of a movie.’
Ernest Bozman, who lives next door to Mr Graham, said his wife was in the shower when the explosion occurred. He added: ‘A neighbour ran over and shouted, “You better get out – next door is on fire”.’
Locals said they were told the incident was probably caused by a gas leak. Six fire engines and their crews worked to extinguish the blaze after the alarm was raised at around 1.40pm. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service later confirmed there were no other casualties.
A Police Scotland spokesman said: ‘A number of nearby buildings have been evacuated. One man has been taken to Glasgow Royal Infirmary by ambulance for treatment.’
The condition of Mr Graham is not yet known.
In October last year, a family of four from Ayr were seriously injured when their house was wrecked in a suspected gas explosion.
Marion and William Ferguson and their two sons, aged 16 and 11, were pulled from the rubble of their home after the explosion.
The damage was so severe several adjoining properties later had to be demolished. Locals said they smelt gas before the explosion, but the cause has yet to be confirmed.
In December, The Scottish Mail on Sunday revealed how a report 20 years ago had found that the country’s antiquated pipe system needed to be modernised or lives would be at risk.
An industry expert said further explosions were ‘inevitable’ as the gas network owners at the time did not take the findings seriously enough. The report was compiled after a family of four were killed in 1999 when their home in Larkhall, Lanarkshire, was blown up by a gas leak from a corroded mains pipe.
Transco, which operated the network, was fined £15 million.