Cropston: Woman seriously injured in water pipe explosion

The road will be closed for several weeks while repair works takes place

A woman has been taken to hospital with serious leg injuries after an explosion destroyed a Leicestershire road.

Severn Trent Water was carrying out water maintenance work in Reservoir Road, Cropston, when the blast happened on Tuesday afternoon.

Katie Lallo, 30, was walking next to the works when the ground erupted, knocking her out.

The water company said a full investigation would take place to determine what happened.

Ms Lallo's brother, Will Marshall, said his sister remained in hospital after suffering an open fracture of both her fibula and tibia in one leg.

Will Marshall said his family were shaken up after his sister, Katie, was injured in the explosion

"She was walking through Bradgate Park on her lunch break and was next to the roadworks when the whole road exploded," he told the BBC.

"She was knocked out and was screaming when she came round.

"Her ankle has been completely messed up, it's an open fracture and she broke her lower leg."

He said the family were not sure if she will be able to walk properly again and are waiting for a further assessment.

"The whole family are really shaken up by it and she is really struggling with it big time," he said.

Tony Marshall said his daughter was fortunate to survive the blast

Tony Marshall, Katie's father, said her injuries could have been worse had she not had the sense to cover her head.

"One of the big slabs...actually fell on her. It could have been a mega disaster, " he said.

"Fortunately she's still alive."

Leicestershire Police confirmed they were called to the scene and that a female patient was taken to Leicester Royal Infirmary.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has launched an investigation into the blast, the force added.

The explosion took place at about 13:30 BST on Tuesday

Leicestershire County Council said Reservoir Road could be closed for up to 21 days, to allow for the water company to repair a "collapsed water main".

A Severn Trent spokesperson said: "We're aware of an incident that occurred yesterday on Reservoir Road in Cropston when contractors working on our behalf were upgrading the network.

"Three people were involved, with one person taken to hospital.

"We'd like to thank the emergency services on site for their assistance and support.

"The safety and wellbeing of the public, employees and contractors is of paramount importance to us at Severn Trent, and we're conducting a full investigation to determine what has happened."