Burnley explosion: Teenage girl pulled from house blast
- Published
Fire crews were using an aerial ladder platform to make safe the structure of the house
A teenage girl has been pulled from rubble after a house explosion which left a man seriously injured.
A house collapsed after a blast on Sefton Terrace in Burnley, Lancashire, just after midday, Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service (LFRS) said.
A man was airlifted to Royal Preston Hospital after suffering major trauma and a female patient was assessed in Royal Blackburn Hospital.
Neighbours recall hearing a bang and seeing "black smoke everywhere".
The cause of the explosion is not yet known.
Sarah Jones, 19, who lives opposite the end-of-terrace house said she had been at home when she heard the noise followed by scraping noises, which she now believes were the windows coming off the property.
'Very lucky'
She said relatives of the family who live in the house were outside and told her the 17-year-old girl was inside.
"Neighbours got a ladder and were climbing up to the top two windows but then they realised she wasn't upstairs, she was in the front room and had gone through into the cellar, through the floor.
"She was covered in rubble and her relative had to pull her out from under everything," she said. "She is very, very lucky.".
Cadent Gas said it was "too early to speculate" what caused the explosion
A team from Burnley Council was helping to evacuate several properties nearby, said Lancashire Police.
LFRS said fire crews were using an aerial ladder platform to make safe the structure of the house, "by removing coping stones from gable end".
Another neighbour, Lisa Gorton, 42, said: "I was just stood there and I heard a big bang like if you're watching a movie or you see a building being knocked down.
"I saw all black smoke and the windows went through and everyone came running out.
"I rang the fire brigade. Everyone was trying to help."
Fire crews are working at the scene to make the structure of the house safe
A search and rescue team, fire crews, police, and gas and electricity vans were seen on the street.
A spokesman for gas emergency service Cadent said there was a "multi-agency response" to the incident.
He added: "We will make sure everything associated with gas is safe.
"It is too early to speculate on the cause. Our thoughts are with everyone impacted."
Local councillor Sarah Hall was at the scene to support residents.
Andy Fewings, also a councillor, said 10 houses had been evacuated and residents were being told to go to St Matthew's Church on Albion Street.
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