Man ran into collapsed home after fatal blast

Johnny Wharmsby said he had been left processing what happened in John Street, Worksop, over the weekend

A man has been reliving the moment he entered a partially collapsed house and assisted at the scene following a fatal explosion at a house in Nottinghamshire.

The blast, in John Street, Worksop, on Saturday evening, damaged multiple homes and resulted in the death of 53-year-old David Howard.

Johnny Wharmsby, who said he had a "base instinct" of wanting to help people, described the inside of the home, adjacent to where Mr Howard was found, as having looked "like a bomb had gone off".

"No-one wants to be put in that position, but I just happened to be there when this terrible incident happened," Mr Wharmsby said. "I just thought this is what I do best, trying to help people."

Mr Wharmsby, who lives in the town, was captured on video emerging from the partially collapsed terraced house.

He said he had been wandering up to the pub with a friend for "one last drink", when he heard an "almighty explosion".

Mr Wharmsby added he had been searching for anyone who might have been trapped.

"It just looked like a bomb had gone off. That's the only way I can describe it," he said. "It was like a war zone. I suppose the adrenaline kept me from panicking or freaking out.

"[I saw] utter carnage and the doors had been completely blown off.

"I heard just a lot of alarms going off... [there was] shouting out in the street from other residents who lived close by.

"It was just a lot of noise and a lot of confusion from everyone really about what's gone off."

Bassetlaw District Council and Nottinghamshire County Council have thanked the public for their patience

The 32-year-old said fortunately no-one had been inside the house he checked.

He said he had stayed behind for another few hours to knock on doors and alert nearby residents to leave, as well as help where he could.

"I just did what I thought was best," he said. "That doesn't make me any better of a person than any other member of the public, you know. The real heroes are the ones who do that every single day.

"The adrenaline kicked in, the instinct [to help people] kicked in, and away I went really."

'Not sunk in'

Mr Wharmsby said it was his previous training in emergency first responding with the St John Ambulance charity that made him feel like he could help.

He went back to his job as a bus driver on Tuesday but is still trying to process what happened.

"I wouldn't say it's fully sunk in at the minute. I don't want to try and play it out in any way shape or form but it has been difficult," he said.

He also praised the emergency services, which he said did an "incredible job".

"It's not an ordinary situation, and it's not something I don't think anyone or any of us would want to find ourselves in.

"It's certainly something that hopefully, fingers crossed, I never have to find myself in again," he added.

Part of John Street remains cordoned off while demolition and investigation work continues

Investigations are continuing into the explosion and Nottinghamshire Police said on Tuesday a 43-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of murder.

The force said he had been questioned and bailed pending further investigation.

Det Ch Insp Ruby Burrow said: "Whilst we have made an arrest, I want to be really clear that our investigation remains at a very early stage and we are doing everything possible to establish what caused this deeply tragic incident.

"It remains too early to say whether there is a criminal element to this case and would ask that people avoid speculation."

On Wednesday, Bassetlaw District Council said residents from 14 homes were still unable to return home, with three properties requiring demolition due to the severity of the damage.

The authority said it had placed some of those residents in hotels while others had found alternative accommodation via their insurers or landlords.