I still have flashbacks from explosion that wrecked my home

Marie McDowall spent nearly all her savings buying and refurbishing a house in South Ayrshire, in which she planned to spend her retirement enjoying time with her family.

The 66-year-old moved to Kincaidston, near Ayr, in June 2021 - she liked the area, had joined the local bowling club and was looking forward to walking to the nearby community centre.

Four months later, while sitting on her porch, she heard an explosion.

A corroded gas pipe caused the blast outside a neighbouring property, leaving a family of four in hospital and the surrounding homes either destroyed or beyond repair.

"I didn't know what happened," said Marie. "I ran out, as did everybody. I saw the house, there was nothing left.

"I was just sitting on my porch and boom, I lost everything practically,"

The explosion hit a block of four houses, and caused extensive damage to property around the blast zone

There were no fatalities as a result of the blast on 18 October - but its impact on the community is still being felt nearly three years on.

Marie was left completely deaf in one ear and partially deaf in the other. She has also suffered from panic attacks and depression.

"I had nightmares, I still sometimes have flashbacks," she said.

"I did try to have an appointment with a counsellor but that was during Covid and they wouldn’t do face-to-face, it was all online which I really didn’t find useful."

Many of the residents were left fighting insurance battles to cover the cost of the damage to cars and properties.

Marie's house was initially left standing, but was eventually demolished alongside the other worst-affected homes.

She has been forced to move into two rental properties - the second because her first landlord decided to sell up - and has had to scrape together furniture for her current accommodation.

The rent is covered by her insurer Direct Line Group, but she has not yet received a payout for contents and does not think she will get any compensation.

Marie's home was initially left standing, but has now been demolished

Now the area remains an empty fenced-off site and there is no clear date as to when the homes will be rebuilt.

Much of Marie's sadness is rooted in not having a place to call her own home.

"It’s the house, I want my own home," she said. "This isn’t my home, I can’t put pictures up on the wall.

"The houses were to be rebuilt, should have been this year in October but now the company is saying it could be next year. It's at the back of my mind every night -somebody just do something.

"I’m sitting here miserable. I don’t know what else to do."

'Extremely complex'

In September 2022, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) released a report into the cause of the explosion.

It said there were "numerous localised spots of corrosion" in the service pipe leading to Number 3 Gorse Park but there would be no prosecutions - a conclusion that some residents described as a "kick in the teeth".

Meanwhile, Ramsay McMichael Consulting took on the project management 15 months after the explosion and it warned that initial timescales were subject to change.

It said its "focus has been on the interests of all the owners" and it has been "liaising with the other stakeholders through a financially complex project" in a sympathetic way.

It said it was now nearing the procurement stage which will lead to the project moving to site shortly thereafter.

Insurer Direct Line Group said it remained very sympathetic to Marie's situation, which it described as "extremely complex".

The company said it was in "dialogue regarding the construction of her new home" and was liaising with her to agree settlement of her contents claim.

Marie hopes the wait will not be too long.