Summary

Live Reporting

Edited by Emma Hallett, with Ross Pollard reporting from the scene

  1. That is all from our live page coverage of the Yate house explosion. Thank you for reading.

    You can find more updates here and coverage will also continue on BBC Radio Bristol and BBC Points West.

  2. Footage from the scene

    Bea Swallow
    BBC News, West of England

    Here's some more video footage that has been sent into us. It was taken shortly after the gas explosion which led to a fire that engulfed the home.

    The fire has since been safely extinguished but the area has been littered with piles of debris and we are told a heavy smell of smoke still lingers.

    Fierce blaze destroys home in Yate, Bristol

  3. 'Smouldering ruins'

    Dan Johnson
    West of England correspondent

    We’ve been allowed briefly inside the cordon to see the devastation and there’s almost nothing left of the house. The scattered roof tiles, shattered glass and smouldering ruins demonstrate the power of this early morning explosion.

    Cars across the road have their windows smashed and are covered in bricks. The roof of the neighbouring house has been blown off - the chimney now stands precariously over the burnt wreckage.

    The middle property of a row of five has been totally destroyed, leaving a strange gap with little to suggest a house ever stood there - just a pile of charred debris and an acrid smell.

    The middle house in a row of terraced properties has been completely blown out, with smoking remains and crumpled debris laying strewn about.PA/Ben Birchall

    The home has been completely gutted from the row of terraced houses

    On the other side of the gap is a hole in the wall of the neighbouring house where bricks and breeze blocks have been blown aside.

    With the fire extinguished the emergency service response has begun scaling down. But engineers are here trying to work out how this happened and large numbers of residents are still affected by the road closures and evacuation zone.

    The fire service incident commander spoke for everyone here when he told me the people inside the house were “very lucky” to escape this explosion.

  4. Hear more on BBC Sounds

    You can listen to BBC Sounds to hear more from Rich Cainey - who lives next door and was "thrown out of bed" by the impact of the explosion.

    Rich Cainey, who lives next door, describes the dramatic moment the explosion happened.

  5. 'The house was gone in seconds'

    Bea Swallow
    BBC News, West of England

    Charlie Daines was in her garden when she heard "an almighty explosion" and witnessed the house "shooting up into the air".

    "It was just crumbling. It flew miles into the sky and all the smoke that followed it," she said.

    "It goes right through your body, all the houses shook, it was horrendous."

    Ms Daines and her husband frantically rushed over to the property to offer their assistance, providing blankets, chairs and glasses of water to those injured and in shock.

    "It all happened so quickly," she said. "Our main concern was ‘is everybody OK? We need to help’.

    "We didn’t really think about ourselves or the house or anything else, we just ran straight round there.

    "I’ve never seen anything like it. The noise, the fire, and the house just gone in seconds."

    A woman with blonde hair looking to the camera. She has on a black and white shirt and is stood in a pub.

    Charlie Daines spoke to the BBC at The Farmhouse pub, which has opened its doors to people affected by the explosion

  6. New images of explosion aftermath

    Bea Swallow
    BBC News, West of England

    Images are beginning to emerge of the aftermath of the explosion. They show the charred remains of the property and surrounding debris. The first image below is from Avon Fire and Rescue Service which has deployed a drone to assess the extent of the damage from above.

    A drone image showing the aerial view of the top of the burnt home. The entire property has been burnt to the ground but the neighbouring homes seem structurally intact besides a burnt roof.Avon Fire and Rescue Service

    This image shows an aerial view of the top of the home - which is completely destroyed

    The charred bricks of the damaged home. The roof has completely gone but the line where the tiles once were is still visible. A neighbour's bedroom window has been smashed from the impact.Ben Birchall/PA

    The property next door has been left with a large hole in its wall

    A blue Ford parked on the road at the scene of the explosion. Its roof has been caved in from falling bricks and debris. Emergency crews have set upBen Birchall/PA

    Debris can be seen thrown across the road and onto the roof of this blue car

    A view over the back garden of the damaged property, showing the row of terraced homes with the middle one burnt to the ground. In the foreground, the car park is covered in brick fragments and debris.Ben Birchall/PA

    The roof of the next door house is almost completely destroyed

    A female fire fighter wearing a yellow hi-vis jacket and khaki trousers. She is signalling to two fire engines who are reversing up Lancaster RoadBen Birchall/PA

    Emergency services have been on the scene since shortly after 06:50 BST

    A person wearing black trousers and a yellow hi-vis jacket that says 'GAS' across the back. They are entering the front door of a property. Emergency vehicles are visible in the foreground, out of focus.Ben Birchall/PA

    Gas workers have also been seen at the property

  7. Neighbour 'thrown out of bed' by explosion impact

    Bea Swallow
    BBC News, West of England

    Rich Cainey has lived next door to the damaged property with his parents for 35 years.

    He told the BBC he was asleep when he was suddenly "thrown out of bed" by the impact of the explosion.

    “I ran outside and saw next door’s house was completely gone and engulfed in flames," said Mr Cainey.

    “I could hear screams from next door so my first thought was to get everyone out safely."

    Rich Cainey wearing a black hoodie and black rectangular glasses. He has a full dark beard and short brown hair which is shaven on the sides. He sis standing in front of a brick wall outside the Farmhouse pub.

    Mr Cainey said the incident was "devastating for everyone involved"

    He said that his father - a former police officer - was walking their dogs when the explosion happened and rushed into the building to help the occupants out.

    “It was instant panic from all the neighbours, everyone was running around in the street," Mr Cainey continued.

    "No one was really thinking about anything but making sure everyone was safe."

  8. Fire now extinguished

    Bea Swallow
    BBC News, West of England

    The fire on Lancaster Road has been "safely extinguished", the Avon Fire and Rescue Service said.

    It added that a cordon has been put in place and again asked for local people to avoid the area while it deals with the incident.

    About 40 people have been evacuated from surrounding homes as a precaution.

    A view across the neighbouring back garden towards the destroyed home. It shows charred bricks inside the home and piles of debris on the ground.

  9. Fire burns terraced home to the ground

    This image was captured shortly after the explosion, which happened at about 06:50 BST this morning, when the ferocity of the fire was clear to see.

    A row of terraced brick houses. The one in the middle has been completely gutted by fire, with only part of the front porch remaining. The neighbouring homes have sustained fire damage to their roofs. There are bright orange flames actively burning, and a large plume of black smoke billowing into the sky.Rich Cainey

    The fire has ripped through the property, leaving only a small section of the front porch remaining

  10. 'Huge bang'

    Bea Swallow
    BBC News, West of England

    An eyewitness called Steve Edwards told BBC Radio Bristol the incident unfolded "very rapidly".

    He lives about 200m (656ft) away from the affected property and said: “There was a huge bang and I didn’t know what it was.

    "I thought maybe something had fallen over in the house.

    “We could see flames coming up and it was really very scary. To be honest I’m a little bit in shock now."

    Parked cars on Lancaster Road that have been damaged by the impact from the explosion and falling debris. Firefighters are standing outside the property and there is a fire engine parked on the right.Rich Cainey

    Debris from the explosion has been thrown across Lancaster Road

    Mr Edwards is among a number of residents who have been evacuated from their homes.

    A neighbouring pub, The Farmhouse, has opened its doors as a space for the community to gather.

    "The police have told us to expect to be out of our house for a good while as they secure the area and make sure everything is safe," Mr Edwards said.

    "Everybody is just sort of standing around. I can see one guy still in his pyjama bottoms."

  11. Three taken to hospital

    Bea Swallow
    BBC News, West of England

    Three people have been taken to hospital with burn injuries - including two people who are believed to have lived at the house, the BBC understands.

    Avon and Somerset Police say their injuries are not believed to be life-threatening or life-changing.

    "A fourth person has sustained minor injuries and was seen by the ambulance service," the force added.

    "Members of the public are being advised to avoid the area and keep the roads clear while emergency services are at the scene."

  12. Photo shows extent of damage

    We've been sent this image that clearly shows the damage to the house.

    The fire has burnt it almost to the ground, leaving behind lots of debris.

    One of the neighbouring houses has also had its roof badly damaged, with just the chimney remaining.

    Image showing damage to houses after firePeter Noone

  13. 'Residents in utter shock'

    Dawn Limbu
    BBC News, Bristol

    Alan Monaghan, Liberal Democrat councillor on Yate Town Council, says he was watching TV when he thought he heard a "door slam" upstairs in his house.

    "It's unbelievable. I can see a house which has been engulfed and we can see the fire service doing the best to save the house, but struggling."

    Mr Monaghan says he is "impressed" by how fast the emergency services arrived at Lancaster Road.

    Describing the scene, he says he's seen people in dressing gowns being escorted out of their homes.

    "A lot of residents are out in utter shock. They can't believe it's happening.

    "Some people are quite distressed."

    A man standing in front of a fire engine on a street. He is wearing a green hoodie, brown top, glasses and is looking at the camera

  14. 'Roof is completely gone'

    Ross Pollard
    BBC West

    I can see lots of fire engines, an aerial ladder, and what remains of the house.

    The roof is completely gone, the chimney is still standing. You can see some smoke coming from the property but you can smell it still - it’s very, very strong.

    There’s more than a dozen emergency vehicles, lots of fire engines, a fire command unit, and since I’ve been here more and more have been arriving as well.

    We understand that some other properties are being evacuated. I’ve seen several people being escorted from Lancaster Road.

    A fire engine parked on a residential street

    Fire crews are working to extinguish the blaze

  15. Eyewitness video shows damage to home

    This video shows the extent of the damage to the house.

    The house appears to have almost burned to the ground. Police say the fire from the explosion has spread to neighbouring houses.

  16. Latest from the scene

    Our reporter Ross Pollard has just arrived at the scene in Yate.

    Dozens of emergency vehicles are in attendance, with fire engines working to extinguish the fire.

    Police cars and fire engines on a road in Yate, Bristol

    Emergency services were called to Lancaster Road earlier

    Police cars and fire engines on a road in Yate, Bristol

    The house went up in flames on Tuesday morning

    Fire engines hosing down a house in Lancaster Road, Yate

    Fire crews are working to extinguish the fire

  17. 'Plenty of people helping'

    Bea Swallow
    BBC News, West of England

    More now from eyewitness Neil Lewis. He praised the response of emergency workers.

    “The fire service were there within five minutes, doing a marvellous job, as quick as anything.

    "It was like a military operation. I just hope whoever lived there got out okay," Mr Lewis said.

    “When everyone started turning up I decided to leave, because there was plenty of people there helping. The smoke and the damage was coming down."

  18. Did you see what happened?

    If you're near the scene or saw what happened, there's a few ways to get in touch with us.

  19. Eyewitness says there is 'debris everywhere'

    Bea Swallow
    BBC News, West of England

    Nearby resident Neil Lewis says he saw the flames while driving his partner to work around 06:50 BST.

    “I thought I’d call in to see what it was and if anyone needed help," he told the BBC.

    "The house has gone up, it looks like an explosion.

    "There’s debris everywhere and people in the street. I’m not sure if it was the neighbours or the people in the house, but it looked like they were being cared for. They looked in shock, in distress."

  20. What we know so far

    • A house has been extensively damaged in a fire in Yate, Bristol
    • The fire has spread to a nearby property
    • Police have told us that they suspect it was due to a gas explosion - We are waiting to hear more details
    • Eyewitnesses at the scene have spoken of a "loud shuddering" at the time of the incident