Residents of a quiet town rocked by a shock suspected gas explosion that nearly levelled several homes have told how they were left “petrified” by the incident.
Police declared a major incident on Saturday evening following a blast on a residential street in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, with fire crews and ambulances rushing to the scene of a partially destroyed property. Emergency services evacuated several other homes on John Street after 7pm, with no indication of casualties early on following the incident. Locals waking up to a partially wrecked neighbourhood this morning have recounted the intense initial moments of the explosion as responders remain at the scene.
One woman, who didn’t want to be named, told The Mirror the explosion happened while she was in her garden taking her washing in. She said she was left “absolutely petrified” after hearing a massive bang, finding the blast had hit her conservtory, before her husband ran to survey the scene.
She said: “I was absolutely petrified. There was this almighty bang and took my conservatory was damaged. My husband ran out. There was black smoke and the house roof behind me was caved in.” The woman added that she spent the night in her camper van, and that the blast appeared to have “well damaged” at least five homes.
She continued: “We were evacuated but I was allowed to get my camper van which is where I slept. It think it took five houses – well damaged them.”
Marlene, who lives three doors away with her partner who was working at the time, said the explosion struck “like a bomb”. She said: “My whole house shook. I just froze and started talking to my dog Missy saying ‘Oh my God what was that’. But she shot upstairs. The glass from my chandelier shattered and was on the floor. If I’d been in my garden I would have been knocked out from all the debris. My back door won’t shut.
“I rushed out the front and my neighbour’s door had been blown off and the cars damaged. I was worried if there was a gas explosion it could happen again. There were slates off the roof, fence panels and dust everywhere. I saw the smoke. Then all the people came taking videos. I guessed it had been a gas explosion. I’m still shaking now. Everyone is shook up. It was the biggest explosion you can ever imagine, it felt like a bomb.”
She says she keeps returning to the scene because her tortoise is still upstairs and she’s worried his heat lamp may have shattered too. One man told how he raced to the scene after hearing a “big boom”. He said: “I went running there straight away and this man came up saying ‘that’s my house!’ I asked if there was anyone in there and he said; ’Yes, there’s one in there.’
Another local Penny Marriott said: “I’ve never heard anything like it in my life. I’ve got a mirror on my living room wall and it blew that straight off. I was just eating my tea, it put me off my tea, I couldn’t finish it then. I know the lad who lived there. It’s terrible, I thought the top flat fell through into my bedroom. The whole house shook, the dog is in a right state , he’s not moved yet. It was horrendous.”
Other locals have told of similar experiences, taking to social media to recount the moment the explosion left their homes “shaking”.
One woman living nearby said she heard a “loud bang”, adding the resulting shockwave “shook my windows”. Another added that she was shopping in Aldi when she felt a “massive shake and bang”, while a third said she felt the explosion as far away as Gateford, initially believing she thought she was “imagining things”.
Nottinghamshire Police Chief Inspector Neil Humphris declared the explosion a major incident on Sunday, with emergency services stationed in the area overnight. He said the service would investigate the incident, with Nottingham Fire and Rescue saying it had sent firefighters from four stations.
A statement from the fire service said: “This has now been declared a major incident, and we are likely to be on scene throughout the night and even into Sunday morning, owing to the significant damage to the building.”
Residents evacuated overnight have been sent to the nearby Crown Place community centre as emergency services remain on standby this morning. Members of the public have been asked to avoid the area.
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