Seven Sisters blast caused by 'ageing LPG gas equipment'

The house was destroyed by the blast and neighbouring properties were badly damaged

A house explosion that left a mother and her two sons seriously hurt was "most likely" caused by "ageing LPG gas equipment and environmental conditions", police say.

Jessica Williams, 31, was injured in the blast in Seven Sisters in Neath Port Talbot last Wednesday, along with her sons aged two and five.

Engineers believe the blast "appears not to be gas network related."

Police investigated and said there "was no criminal cause of the explosion".

Utilities engineering firm GTC has now said it had found no evidence a gas leak caused the blast.

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South Wales Police, meanwhile, said the "cause of the explosion has not been deemed suspicious and the most likely explanation is a combination of ageing LPG gas (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) equipment and environmental conditions".

Ms Williams' sons were flown to Southmead Hospital in Bristol and are both in serious but stable conditions after the explosion on Church Road.

Police said Ms Williams was taken to Morriston Hospital in Swansea and she remains in a critical but stable condition.

A total of 14 neighbouring properties had to be evacuated following the explosion.

Around 18 neighbours helped to free the family from the badly damaged house on 24 June.

A spokeswoman for the utilities company said: "GTC engineers worked with the emergency services following last week's incident to make the area safe and undertake an investigation in to the cause.

"As a result of GTC's investigation, it appears not to be gas network related."

Fourteen neighbouring properties were evacuated

Neath MP Christina Rees has thanked residents who have "come together" to support those affected by the explosion "after a difficult week" for the community.

Nearby properties had undergone structural surveys and some residents have been able to return to their homes, Ms Rees said.

"The most severely affected properties remain under constant reassessment as the council's building control team seek to remove debris, reclaim personal items, and make the site safe," she said.

"All my thoughts continue to be with those who have been injured in this tragic incident - we are all willing you on to make a full and speedy recovery."

Ms Rees added an emergency fund had been set up by the Dovecote Day Nursery, which the two children attend.